Carcar Chicharon: A Cebuano’s favorite

You know you have reached the humble city of Carcar as you are welcomed right at its borderline by the familiar, local tone “’Charon, ampao, ‘charon special” – ampao, a variation of sweetened rice crispies and ‘charon’ being short for the much craved Carcar chicharon.

What makes it more special than many of its counterparts? It’s that real pork meat, fat, and skin, deep fried into perfect golden crisp and right salty flavour.

Plus, when you arrive at the capital, you simply couldn’t resist the fresh from the oil and carajay, unpacked goodness of the Carcar chicharon displayed all over the place! All the rest, are a distant second.

Then again, Carcar chicharon is just one of the many things to look forward to when getting to this southern Cebu destination. Because aside from this well-loved snack, the place is also visited for its rich heritage of stone houses (Balay nga Tisa), well-known painters old and new, and its shoe-making industry (Carcar is dubbed as little Marikina and Cebu’s Shoe Capital).