Follow the smoke: Famed UP food spot to move again

32 YEARS AND GRILLING The street food stall has been a UP fixture since 1984. Jenele Mane

THIS “institution” within the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, has satisfied students, teachers and residents for over three decades with its hot, tasty treats off the grill.

But once again the beloved Mang Larry’s Isawan is feeling the heat and may have to take its menu of skewered gizzards and intestines elsewhere on the campus, after the UP Swimming Varsity Team complained about the smoke affecting the athletes’ daily practice.

It will be the third time for the famous street food stall to relocate—if it is to continue fostering fond campus memories for the UP community. A tarpaulin sign now informs customers of its impending removal.

“It’s disheartening,” said 21­year old Cassandra Marzo, who learned about Mang Larry’s predicament online. “I started coming here as an undergraduate about three years ago; I remember traveling a long way just to be here with friends.”

In May, the swimming team formally asked UP Chancellor Mike Tan that the stall be moved to “a site where the smoke emitted will not be able to reach the vicinity of the swimming pool” about 15 meters away.

The coach, Bernie Cavida, assured the community that they were not calling for the eviction of Mang Larry’s from UP but only for its transfer. He stressed that it’s all for the swimmers’ well being.

“These kids train here every day; we don’t want to compromise their health,” Cuvida said in an interview.

“The main issue is that as swimmers we are heavily dependent on air. [But] when we lift our heads from the water, the first thing we inhale is smoke,” said the team captain, Joy Rodgers.

The “ihaw-ihaw” opens as early as 9 a.m. but gets busiest—and smokiest—around 5 p.m., just when the team is training.

According to Cavida, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs is currently “processing” the team’s request.

Reached for comment, Mang Larry himself—or businessman Lauro Condencido Jr.—confirmed that he is already looking for his next possible location within UP Diliman.

Condencido said the administration had not given him a deadline, but he declined to discuss the matter in detail.

Since it opened in 1984, Mang Larry’s Isawan has practically roamed the UP grounds. For 31 years, it operated at a spot near Kalayaan dormitory.

In 2015, it moved to the parking lot of the Law building. But before the year ended, in November, it once again relocated near the UP chapel—which also put it close to the varsity team’s swimming pool.

Through those years, the isawan bore witness to endless campus chatter and laughter, dates and even heartbreaks, becoming a part of UP students’ lives, one barbecue stick at a time. With reports from Jenele Mane and Pam Castro