THE MENU at Via Mare’s 50th anniversary celebration was equal parts familiar and grand, reflecting what its founder Glenda Barretto did in 1975.
Via Mare got its start in Makati in 1975, where the chef made seafood soup encased in a crust: Manila had not seen anything like it before, and they loved it so much they even told their foreign friends where and how to order it.
Ms. Barretto then got a degree of fame as a restaurateur and caterer, and while catering for an executive’s wedding anniversary, she caught the eye of then-First Lady Imelda Marcos, who hired her to cater for the state visit of US President Gerald Ford. She then went on to cater for many state and private occasions for the Marcos family. Her renown was such that her enterprise survived the revolution that booted the Marcos family out in 1986.
Ms. Barretto and Via Mare (expanding its empire from restaurants and catering to fast-casual cafés) became top-of-mind for grand occasions in the country, feeding everyone from royalty to recipients of charity.
More than that, Ms. Barretto’s creativity gained a way for down-home Filipino cooking to grace the highest tables in the land. The menu at the Ayala Museum dinner on Sept. 12 showed tinola (a ginger and chicken soup) served as a flan, modeled after Japanese steamed egg custard (chawan mushi). Balut — the fertilized duck eggs usually used to scare foreigners — was served in a crust (just like her original soup) and veiled as a Balut Surprise, in a delectable light sauce. In a story from ABS-CBN by Michaela Fenix, it’s said that this was first served at a dinner for expatriate hotel managers.
“Filipinos are the first to put down their food. ‘Pangbahay lang ’yan. (It’s only for the home.)’ Hindi naman (not really). Nasa nagluluto ’yan! (It’s in the hands of the cook),” Ms. Barretto told BusinessWorld in a previous story.
In an interview after the dinner, we hinted to Via Mare President, Ramon “Rany” Roño, that Via Mare has done most anything a Philippine restaurant could dream of. But as it turns out, even after 50 years, there’s always room to grow. “A lot of people still need to discover Via Mare. That’s also of our focus (points): to spread it out some more to new markets,” he said.
He smiled when asked if this means that Via Mare may be spreading its wings abroad: “If the possibility and opportunity’s there, why not?”
Speaking with Ms. Barretto earlier this year, when she was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 6th Bravo Empowered Women Awards), she mentioned that they’re planning to bring canned versions of their dishes to the Middle East. To this, Mr. Roño said, “We’re still working on it. Exporting our food is a lot of work. But I know there’s demand for it. We have a lot of customers abroad also looking for good quality Filipino food coming from Via Mare. We just want to make it right.”
In a statement, he said that they owe their longevity to “our consistent commitment to excellence — excellence in the food we serve and the way we serve it.
“We’ve stayed true to our mission of preserving the authenticity of Filipino cuisine by sourcing fresh, high-quality local ingredients, putting thoughtful care into every dish, and creating meaningful connections with our customers,” he said.
“We’ve learned to listen to our customers’ needs without losing sight of our core values. While our menu still features our timeless Filipino dishes that defined us, we’ve also introduced new items, ready to eat options and seasonal offerings — which kept us current and going,” he said.
“It’s a healthy competitive environment as well. We’ve established ourselves as one of the go-to for comfort Filipino food, but at the same time, we try to balance with innovation,” he said when BusinessWorld asked him how they’ve changed the Filipino food scene.
In 1975, Via Mare was just one of a handful of fine dining restaurants in the Philippines, and then it was a show of which best showed mastery of foreign, not Filipino cuisine. “We’re just happy that there are a lot of players in the industry right now.” — Joseph L. Garcia
