Cebu Business Month 2025 amplifies homegrown brands to reach wider audiences
Cebu in a Bite successfully elevated Cebu’s emerging food businesses, providing crucial exposure and networking opportunities for local entrepreneurs. The signature event, part of Cebu Business Month (CBM) 2025 organized by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), demonstrated the island’s commitment to nurturing its vibrant food ecosystem.
Strategically held alongside BAICON 2025, the Philippines’ premier content creator conference, the event attracted food enthusiasts, digital influencers, and industry professionals, creating unprecedented opportunities for local vendors to amplify their brand reach.
CBM Cebu in a Bite Champion Carlo Olano highlighted the event’s diverse representation of Cebu’s food culture, featuring 25 to 30 local establishments. The lineup spanned traditional Cebuano favorites like ngoyong, tuslob-buwa, and inasal, alongside innovative offerings such as Bosang and Croffles.
“We wanted to present the full spectrum of Cebu’s culinary identity under one roof,” Olano explained. “The result was an exceptional blend of heritage flavors, culinary innovation, and accessible pricing that truly represents our food scene.”
The strategic partnership with BAICON proved particularly valuable, enabling participating businesses to leverage influencer marketing and tap into broader digital audiences. “This collaboration created the perfect storm for local brand amplification,” Olano noted. “Content creators became organic ambassadors for these homegrown establishments.”
The CBM 2025 PADAYON CEBU’s Cebu in a Bite showcased an impressive roster of local businesses, including Jerbie’s Kandingan, Wella’s Barbecue Sa Larsian, Croffles, Chef Pablo, LK Bakery, Flix and Chill, Balamban Liempo, Casa Verde, Cluck Sarap, Unlisted Burger, Don Lemon, Lechon Co, and Baka Na Pud.
Crowd favorites emerged across categories, with LK Bakery’s croissant ice cream and Croffles’ innovative waffle creations drawing significant attention. Traditional offerings remained strong performers, with pork barbecue, pochero, roasted beef, balbacua, and various grilled meats and seafood attracting substantial patronage.
Chef Pablo embodies the entrepreneurial spirit that Cebu in a Bite aims to celebrate. Founded by culinary graduate Dayne Mejorado Fernandez at age 19, the fried chicken business evolved from a modest rolling cart operation into a thriving enterprise with 32 branches across Cebu, plus expansion into Bohol and Southern Leyte.
“Our menu focuses on quality homemade offerings like fried chicken, whole chicken, chicken skin, and proven,” Fernandez explained. “While we’re actively pursuing franchise opportunities and system innovations, we remain grounded in our humble origins.”
Fernandez candidly shared the challenges behind the success: “The journey included multiple setbacks and failures, but persistence and commitment to quality kept us moving forward.”
Unlisted Burger’s story exemplifies successful career pivoting in pursuit of entrepreneurial passion. Owner Jhon Pescador, originally pursuing aircraft maintenance, discovered his calling in food service during college, driven by a vision to deliver affordable, premium-quality burgers.
“Our path included numerous failures and learning experiences,” Pescador reflected. “The key was refusing to surrender to setbacks.” Today, Unlisted Burger operates seven locations, including prominent spots in JCentre Mall, North Park Building, and General Maxilom Avenue. Their competitive advantage lies in their artisanal approach, crafting both hamburger buns and patties in-house.
Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival graced the ribbon-cutting ceremony and expressed strong support for establishing Cebu in a Bite as an annual tradition, with aspirations for expanded scale in future iterations.
The inaugural event positively accomplished its dual mission of celebrating Cebu’s rich food heritage while providing a launchpad for local food entrepreneurs. By creating connections between traditional flavors and modern business opportunities, Cebu in a Bite reinforced Cebu’s position as a dynamic culinary destination where heritage and innovation converge.
For more information, please call the Cebu Chamber at 2321421 or email us at info@cebuchamber.org
