Cebu has grown by leaps and bounds since we last went there. Big developments have been completed and are being undertaken. Bigger malls dot the landscape. Bigger business centers have sprouted. It was farthest from our mind, when we recently visited the Queen City of the South, that we’d encounter the biggest burger we’ve ever seen in our entire lives. We found food gold at Casa Verde, an American-style casual dining restaurant.

We went to Casa Verde twice, in a span of one day, when we recently went to Cebu on a much-needed rest and recreation. As they say, you work hard, party even harder, except that our “party” here in VisitPinas is usually in the form of relaxing travels and explorations.

We had lunch at the Casa Verde branch at the IT Park, just across the Waterfront Hotel Casino in Lahug. Then dinner at the Casa Verde branch in Ayala Center Cebu.

It’s not that we don’t have any other good restaurant to visit. Just across the Marcelo Fernan Bridge, Mactan is teeming with great restaurants. We could simply go with the safe choice of fresh seafood at the Sutokil. Or the Cowrie Grill, a block or two from the IT Park. Just some of the wide selection of Cebu restaurants.

We figured, however, that we may not be going back to Cebu in a long while, so we better enjoy Casa Verde to the point of numbness. Plus the food tastes good, servings are huge and prices are insanely reasonable.

Value for money is said to be the restaurant’s core philosophy. From a humble dormitory in 2002, it has grown into a number of branches and now claims to be one of the most popular dining destinations in Cebu.

The popularity of this restaurant is fairly obvious from the long queue of hungry diners, patiently waiting for their turn for around 30 minutes to an hour. It would be a very, very wise idea to go visit the restaurants earlier than the regular meal time. So much for the “comfortable atmosphere” that is one of the cornerstones of the restaurant.

But the food at Casa Verde is worth the wait. We settled on the Casa Verde favorites. There’s Brian’s Ribs, described in the menu this way: “If you taste me you’ll never forget me…Our best seller! Baked pork ribs with a sweet, tangy piquet sauce served with rice and corn and carrots.”

Just a friendly reminder: servings here are large. I can hardly finish the baby back ribs. It costs P208, but the price, based on the size of the serving, would easily be around P1,500 here in Manila. Don’t think of having one order for every member of your dining entourage. But if you insist, well, good luck in consuming the giant burger. Don’t come back and tell us we didn’t warn you.

A visit to Casa Verde won’t be complete without conquering The Big Bang Burger, “9-inch burger topped with onions, tomatoes, lettuce, mayo, American cheese on a sesame-seed bun. And because it’s so huge, the menu hastens to add that “sharing is recommended.” We told you so. =)

To cap off the meal, we ordered another item in the menu that caters to huge appetites, the Milky Way. It’s a milk shake, but it’s not your regular milkshake. It’s the “biggest milkshake in town,” Casa Verde claims. The claim is most probably true. The glass container of the Milky Way is taller than me. Ok, it’s as tall as the kids who were with us. It took 4 people to finish it. Casa Verde probably expects four people to conquer the Milky Way, which is evident from the 4 extra-big strays that come with one serving of this really gigantic milkshake. That’s not the amazing part. What’s more amazing than the size of the Milky Way. The price. Just P288.

We all know that cost-of-living in Cebu is way lesser than in Manila. This probably explains the insanely inexpensive menu items at Casa Verde. The price may be low, but the quality is topnotch. Really, this is one of the few places on earth where you can have your cake and eat it, too. Must-try when you’re in Cebu.