It’s not surprising for one to have an image of UP as the home of fiery activists and pro-masa crowd. What’s surprising, pleasantly surprising really, is the existence of a few pockets inside the UP Diliman campus that serve great food that is — uhm, how else do we delicately put it — not exactly for the masa. My husband knows all about activism but didn’t realize there’s a hotspot of great food right beside their former college. It’s the Cafe Via Mare (the food hotspot, that is).

The usual treat when inside UP campus, at least for us, is the fish ball. The stationary carts are ubiquitous, located in designated places, with the food peddled by accredited vendors that must pass health and other regulations. Go around and explore because no two fish ball stands are the same — the sauce makes all the difference.

In other times, just to bring variety to the mix, we’d go for isaw or the barbecue. Yum! Yum! Yum!

Or we’d drop by Cafe Via Mare. It may be difficult to spot this restaurant. It’s facing Katipunan inside the compound of GT Toyota-Asian Center, that boring-looking concrete structure beside the UP College of Law. Opposite to Cafe Via Mare, at the other side of Katipunan, is the Maynilad Water. If you still don’t know how to find Cafe Via Mare (perhaps be contented with the pisbol?), ask for directions (use the College of Law as marker).

In happier days, those days when everyone in the group was free from health challenges like diabetes, we would have ordered the mouthwatering Guinataang Halo-halo, the puto bumbong, palitaw and bibingka, complete with Laguna cheese and salted duck egg. We’ve downed Dinuguan at Puto, the Crispy Pata, Kare-Kare, Inasal na Manok and Crisp Adobo Flakes.

And how can we forget the Filipino Dessert Shooters? That’s three favorite Filipino dessert in small servings, shotglass-size servings: halo-halo, mais con hielo, and guinomis. Do NOT forget to order the dessert shooter next time you visit the Cafe Via Mare, even if you don’t see this food item in online menus.

Say that again, “I will NOT forget to order the Filipino dessert shooters when I visit Cafe Via Mare in UP Diliman.” Don’t be shy, say it again. Good! And good for you. At least you still get to enjoy it and we can’t. Health reasons. Sad. Really sad.

But all is not lost. The rest of the menu offerings are just as great. Of course, there’s the fresh Lumpia Ubod (“spring roll of hearts of palm with pork and shrimps”). There’s the thick Arroz Caldo (“savory rice porridge” with choice of chicken or goto), the Monggo Soup (“favorite comfort food of mung bean with ampalaya leaves served with shrimps and chicharon”) and the Tiyan ng Bangus Asado (“milkfish bellies with onion rings”). Somehow healthy, but very delicious, food servings.

The food at Cafe Via Mare tastes really good. Consistently very, very good. It’s like the chefs and cooks are scared that the unsatisfied eating public might stage a lighting rally, this being UP territory. So be scared, be very scared, dear chefs (and keep up the great job of churning delicious plates of food, day in and day out).