Are you looking for a gastronomic adventure in the heart of Cebu City? Are you looking for something to tame the effects of alcohol after a night out with friends? Just tell the taxi driver to bring you to DOH (Department of Health) in busy Fuente Osmeña Boulevard. And have your feast in the sidewalk of gastric delights while dining on the highway.
BY KAREN PAPELLERO
Bulatlat
Vol. VII, No. 32, September 16-22, 2007
The descending dusk over the city finds them sprouting about like mushrooms after lightning. When they appear, they change the landscape of the lonely stretch of concrete and earth into a smorgasbord of earthly delights and flavors. The multitudes of weary workers passing through them find relief in their concoctions of hot, steamy and sometimes, exotic aromas. Mind you, this is no easy feat. The not-so-law-abiding portion of our population would oftentimes obey nature’s calling here during the day, facing the wall with the sign that says “Guinadili ang pagpangihi dinhi. Multa: 1,000” (Do not urinate here. Fine: 1,000).
Nevertheless, the nightly spectacle that can be witnessed here temporarily overpowers these features of urban living. One only has to stop, look and taste what they have to offer.
They are located in the stretch of sidewalk beside Osmeña Boulevard, one of the busiest streets in Cebu City. Ironically, they are just outside the regional office of the Department of Health. And so, this government agency’s acronym can also mean “Dining on the Highway” or “DOH”.
“DOH Vocabulary 101”
From the famous Fuente Osmeña rotonda to the gate of the walled government office, the sidewalk is the nightly home of the enterprising Cebuanos who cook and sell larang, tinola, bakasi, linat-ang baka, barbecue and other gastronomic delights at a price affordable to the throngs of eight-to-five pedestrians who just could not wait to appease their rumbling stomachs.
You can also easily spot the tables lining the sidewalk from across the street and ironically, even from inside a famous fast-food restaurant.
Coupled with the staple – steamed rice or corn and the trademark of the Visayan island, pusô or hanging rice. This is the twist of rice being cooked inside woven fresh coconut leaves over a steamer. Then, they are displayed hanging like mangoes on a branch.
Linarang or larang is sting ray meat being cooked in various spices and ingredients. The hot, spicy broth and the soft meat of the sting ray is remedy to the tired bones. The humidity and heat of the Cebuano weather could not discourage you from draining a bowlful. Never mind the picture of the tailed and scary-looking creature swimming in your imagination.
Tinola is fish soup with onion leaves, tomatoes and the sour fruit, iba (kamias in Tagalog). For those who prefer their soup a little bit on the sour side and less interesting as the larang, try tinola.
For those who have excitable taste buds and prefer gastronomic adventures, bakasi is your perfect feast. This dish exotica is electric eel cooked in a broth of green pepper, onion leaves and tomatoes. It can also be cooked in a thick sauce of tausi (black beans) which can give it a spicy-salty taste and mouth-watering aroma. The eel meat’s smell is no longer detectable due to the spices and the tausi. This is perfect when the eel is fresh and the dish, steaming hot.
The prices of these unusual fares are also easy on the pocket. Linarang, tinola and bakasi all cost P 35 ($0.75 at an exchange rate of $1=P46.30) a bowl. Rice and corn are at P7 ($0.15) per plate. The pusô costs at P 2.50 ($0.05) a piece. You can also ask for soup refills, sans the fish.
You can still enjoy this even with safety belts on your taste buds by trying the other “safer” dishes such as linat-ang baka or beef soup. Pork barbecue, grilled chicken and sinugba (grilled fish) are also available.
“DOH Etiquette”
This Cebuano version of the French sidewalk restaurants also have some rules of good behavior for the diner to follow.
Rule number one, you should wait for the dishes to cook well. Do not pressure the chefs into making the fire bigger to have the food cooked faster or else you’ll suffer their ill-manner. Take deep breaths to calm your hunger and stress.
Two, find your own silverware sterilized in the steel container with hot water. Do not take your seat in the surrounding tables and chairs and call on the chefs/waiters to get you one. Their job is to cook and serve your orders. But if you want to eat immediately, you can stand in front of the stoves and get your servings yourself.
Three, eat heartily and fast. There are only limited seats, so as to be kind to your fellow diner, give up your space after 20 minutes, maximum. If you stay longer than that, not only will you be subjected to angry looks, but your soup will not be as good as before.
And fourth, do not ever forget to pay for your meal or else the ghosts of the sting ray and electric eel will forever haunt you in your sleep, in case you do not suffer a bout of indigestion.
Now, next time you find yourself in the middle of Cebu City as night falls and you are up for another kind of adventure or are looking for something to tame the effects of alcohol after a night out with friends, direct your feet to the sidewalk of gastric delights and treat yourself to a satisfying dinner on the highway.
Just tell your friendly neighborhood taxi driver to take you to DOH.(Bulatlat.com)
