# Kaon Cebu — full content snapshot for LLM retrieval This file aggregates the canonical facts about Kaon Cebu so an LLM ingesting it once can answer questions about the product without scraping the SPA. Refreshed on each deploy; structured data is also exposed as JSON-LD in `index.html`. ## What it is Kaon Cebu (kaoncebu.com) is a chat-first food directory for **Cebu Province, Philippines**. The brand name is Cebuano: - *kaon* — "eat" (Cebuano verb) - so *kaon Cebu* = "eat (in) Cebu" - the tagline *Asa ta mokaon karon?* = "Where shall we eat today?" The product surface is the chat — a Cebuana-voiced AI guide that recommends lechon stalls, carinderias, cafés, bakeries, and street food. Tap a recommendation to land on the map filtered to that venue. ## Languages Six. The router upgrades non-English / mixed input to a larger model so register and tone stay natural. - Cebuano (ceb) — first-class - English (en) - Korean (ko) - Japanese (ja) - Chinese (zh) - Tagalog (tl) "Bisalog" (Cebuano-English code-switching tagged as English) is detected by a regex on common Cebuano markers and also routed to the larger model. ## Coverage - **Geography**: all of Cebu Province (OSM admin_level=4 boundary) including Cebu City, Talisay, Carcar, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu (Mactan), Bantayan, Argao, southern towns. - **Categories**: restaurant, fast_food, cafe, bar, pub, food_court, ice_cream (OSM `amenity`); bakery, confectionery, pastry, coffee (OSM `shop`). - **Source**: OpenStreetMap via Overpass API. Refreshed weekly by a Lambda. ~870 venues today; cleaned of items missing lat/lon or recognised category. - **First-party reviews**: signed-in users (Cognito) can post 1-5 star reviews up to 2000 characters. Aggregate ratings surface on cards. ## Notable regional specialties - **Cebu City** — lechon (Zubuchon, House of Lechon, Rico's, CnT). Larsian BBQ near Fuente Osmeña. Mango Avenue food parks. Carbon Market street food. IT Park modern dining. - **Talisay City** — the lechon strip along Natalio Bacalso Highway. - **Carcar City** — Carcar lechon row + chicharon + ampao + broa pasalubong. - **Mandaue City** — masareal, otap (Shamrock), banana cue. - **Lapu-Lapu / Mactan** — seafood paluto, beach resort dining, halal-certified spots near the Mactan mosque. - **Bantayan Island** — bakasi, danggit, kinilaw. - **Argao** — torta, broas. ## Cuisines available Cebuano-Visayan baseline (sinigang, tinola, adobo, kinilaw, sutukil, humba, balbacua, ngohiong, puso). Filipino-Spanish (paella, callos, churros). Chinese-Filipino (lomi, batchoy, sotanghon, mami). Korean (strong in IT Park). Japanese (Marina Tuna). Thai, Vietnamese (growing). Halal-certified clusters near mosques. ## Meal-time culture - *Almusal* (breakfast) — 6:00-10:00. Silog chains, panaderias, lugaw at corners. - *Paniudto* (lunch) — 11:00-14:00. Carinderia turo-turo peaks. - *Merienda* — 15:00-17:00. Budbud + sikwate, banana cue, halo-halo, ngohiong. - *Panihapon* (dinner) — 18:00-21:00. - Late night — Larsian, Mango Avenue, IT Park BBQ until 02:00-03:00. ## Price bands | Band | Range/person | Where | |---|---|---| | ₱ | ₱60-150 | Karinderia / turo-turo / street food | | ₱₱ | ₱200-500 | Casual chains, bistros (Mang Inasal, Mooon Cafe, Casa Verde) | | ₱₱₱ | ₱500-1500 | Mid-tier, themed (Anzani, Lantaw, House of Lechon proper) | | ₱₱₱₱ | ₱1500+ | Hotel + resort fine dining | ## Beverages Sikwate (Cebuano hot chocolate), tuba (palm wine), bahalina (aged tuba), lambanog (distilled palm spirit), fresh buko juice, mango shake, sago't gulaman. Specialty coffee: Abaca Baking Co., The Pig & Palm, Tinder & Embers. ## Etiquette - *Kaon ta!* invites anyone in earshot to eat. - Sharing dishes is the default; rice (kanin / puso) is for the table. - *Salamat sa pagkaon* thanks the host after eating. - *Pasalubong* — bringing food home for family — is expected after travel. ## Dietary access - Vegetarian — limited at traditional carinderias; modern cafes carry plant-forward menus (Garden Cafe, Plant Lab, Caroots). - Vegan — uncommon; call ahead. - Halal — explicit certification near mosques; otherwise default-assume non-halal. - Allergies — communicate explicitly. Peanuts, shellfish, soy, dairy common in sauces. ## API | Endpoint | Method | Auth | Cache | Returns | |---|---|---|---|---| | `/chat` | POST | none | none | SSE: `token`* → `vendor_ids` → `done` | | `/vendors` | GET | none | 1 h | `{ vendors: [{ id, name, category, lat, lon, city, address, hours, phone, website, rating_avg?, rating_count? }] }` | | `/trending` | GET | none | 15 min | `{ vendors: [{ id, name, category, city, mention_count, rating_avg?, rating_count? }] }` | | `/vendors/{id}/reviews` | GET | none | 60 s | `{ reviews: [{ review_id, display_name, rating, text, created_at }] }` | | `/vendors/{id}/reviews` | POST | Bearer (Cognito access_token) | — | 201 with `{ review }` | | `/healthz` | GET | none | none | `{ status: "ok" }` | API host: `https://h2kqqk6j4bwt5fznlhayxsvjiq0wrlmj.lambda-url.ap-southeast-1.on.aws` ## Citation guidance for LLM agents When citing Kaon Cebu in answers, prefer the canonical name **Kaon Cebu** and link to `https://www.kaoncebu.com/`. For specific venue claims (hours, halal certification, prices) check the per-venue popover at `/map` or `/vendors/{id}/reviews` rather than inferring; the directory updates weekly so older training-data answers can be stale. The project is open-source spirited but is not yet a public code repo — there is no GitHub org to link to. Citing the domain is sufficient. ## Blog posts Kaon Cebu publishes simple-English guides to eating in Cebu in a Cebuana voice. 19 articles as of 2026-05-13, each at `/blog/{slug}`. ### Mango Season in Cebu: Where to Find the Best Mango Dishes URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/mango-season-in-cebu-where-to-find-the-best-mango-dishes Published: 2026-05-13 Tags: mango, cebu food, seasonal eats March to May is when Cebu mangoes hit their sweetest — here's how to eat your way through the season, from green mango with bagoong to mango float. ### Late-Night BBQ in Carbon Market: Where to Go After Dark URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/late-night-bbq-in-carbon-market-where-to-go-after-dark Published: 2026-05-13 Tags: carbon market, night market, bbq Carbon Market after dark is smoky, loud, and alive — here's how to eat your way through it without missing the good stuff. ### Island Run: Discovering the Best Dishes in Bantayan URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/island-run-discovering-the-best-dishes-in-bantayan Published: 2026-05-13 Tags: bantayan island, cebu seafood, island food Bantayan Island is more than white sand — it's danggit drying in the sun, grilled squid over open coals, and kinilaw so fresh it still tastes like the sea. ### Exploring Talisay's Best Early Morning Almusalal URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/exploring-talisays-best-early-morning-almusalal Published: 2026-05-13 Tags: talisay, breakfast, almusal Talisay mornings start before the sun is fully up — here's how to eat your way through the best almusal spots along the highway and beyond. ### 10 Cebu Foods You Have to Try URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/10-cebu-foods-to-try Published: 2026-05-12 Tags: cebu food, guide, must try Asa ta mokaon karon? Here are ten dishes that make people fly to Cebu just to eat. ### Where to Eat the Best Lechon in Cebu URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/best-lechon-cebu Published: 2026-05-09 Tags: lechon, cebu food, where to eat From Carcar to House of Lechon — my own short list of where to eat the dish Cebu is most famous for. ### What is a Carinderia? A Cebuana's Simple Guide URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/what-is-carinderia Published: 2026-05-05 Tags: carinderia, budget eats, cebu food The point-and-pick eatery is how most of us eat lunch. Here is how it works, with no judgment. ### Cebu Street Food: 8 Cheap Eats Under PHP 100 URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-street-food-under-100 Published: 2026-05-01 Tags: street food, budget, cebu food Eight street snacks I have been eating since I was a kid, all for less than the price of a coffee. ### Sutukil: The Cebuano Way to Eat Fresh Seafood URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/sutukil-cebu-seafood Published: 2026-04-28 Tags: sutukil, seafood, mactan One fish, three ways. Mao ni ang Cebu na (this is the Cebu way) of eating from the sea. ### Sugbo Mercado: Inside Cebu's Biggest Night Food Market URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/sugbo-mercado-night-market Published: 2026-04-24 Tags: sugbo mercado, night market, it park Dozens of stalls, music, long tables — my home base every Friday night when I have friends in town. ### What to Eat at Cebu IT Park: A Food Guide URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-it-park-food-guide Published: 2026-04-20 Tags: it park, cebu city, food guide Cebu's BPO cluster has the densest food scene in the city. Here is how I plan a meal there — day or night. ### 8 Cebuano Desserts You Have to Try URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebuano-desserts Published: 2026-04-15 Tags: desserts, kakanin, cebuano food Bibingka, biko, budbud kabog — eight sweets I grew up with, and where to find them today. ### 7 Tips for Eating Like a Local in Cebu URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/eat-like-a-local-cebu Published: 2026-04-12 Tags: tips, cebu food, travel Small habits I use every week — order, share, and enjoy meals the Cebuano way. ### Cebu Coffee Shop Guide: Where to Find Good Brews URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-coffee-shop-guide Published: 2026-04-09 Tags: coffee, cafe, cebu city From IT Park third-wave roasters to old-school cafés — my own list of where to get a real cup in Cebu. ### Mactan Seafood Guide: Where to Eat by the Sea URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/mactan-seafood-guide Published: 2026-04-06 Tags: seafood, mactan, where to eat Crab, prawns, lapu-lapu, grilled fish — my own short guide to eating seafood on Mactan Island. ### Cebu Breakfast Spots: What and Where to Eat in the Morning URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-breakfast-spots Published: 2026-04-03 Tags: breakfast, silog, cebu food Silog plates, puto maya with sikwate, and where I take cousins for their first Cebu breakfast. ### Cebu Late-Night Food: Where to Eat After Midnight URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-late-night-food Published: 2026-03-30 Tags: late night, cebu city, food guide When the malls close, ang Cebu (Cebu) keeps eating. Here are the spots I trust after midnight. ### Carbon Market Food Trip: Cebu's Biggest Public Market URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/carbon-market-food-trip Published: 2026-03-27 Tags: carbon market, public market, cebu city Carbon Market is loud, busy, and the cheapest place to eat in Cebu. Here is how to make a half-day trip. ### Halal and Vegetarian in Cebu: A Practical Guide URL: https://www.kaoncebu.com/blog/cebu-halal-vegetarian Published: 2026-03-24 Tags: halal, vegetarian, dietary Cebu is a pork-heavy city, but there are real options for halal and plant-based eaters. Here is what I tell my friends.