I once went through a Buffalo Chicken stage. Basically, it was a quest to find the restaurant that served this dish best and the winner, according to my taste buds, is Burgoo.

They recently opened a branch at SM Southmall and we took the opportunity to treat my parents and sister who had never tried this place before.

Manhattan's Best - Php 395 (Regular)

The dressing was a little too light for me as I tend to favor thick and strong flavored dressings.

Supreme Sampler - Php 425 (Regular)

Well, this is what it looked like after we had dug in since I forgot to snap a photo when it was first served at our table. Earl and I usually order this as it has everything we both like.

Boneless Buffalo Chicken - Php 325 (Regular)

Ah, my favorite! My mother also liked it though she said she prefers the one at Yellow Cab.

Seafood Au Gratin - Php 375 (Regular)

My sister ordered this and while I was not too keen (anything "au gratin" reminds me of mac and cheese), it turned out to better than expected. Quite good actually.

Raspberry Cheesecake - Php 195

This was another hit, but it's a very dense cheesecake - best shared with others after a light meal.

All in all, everyone enjoyed the meal and ended with Mom planning to bring her friends there too for her birthday.

Ramen X

Another new addition to the South dining scene is Ramen X. Located at the new wing of the Alabang Town Center, both Earl and I have decided that it's worth the trip to the third floor if you're in the mood for reasonably cheap eats.

Fried Gyoza - Php 59
Gyudon Rice Bowl - Php 99

Green Apple Soda - Php 50
Ebi Tempura Rice Bowl - Php 109

The apple soda actually had the taste of apples (unlike the one we tried at Hapadog) and both rice bowls came with a complimentary bowl of soup. And typical of free soups, it was more like watery chicken broth...

The rice bowls were not bad, though I prefer the Beef Misono over at Tokyo Tokyo to the Gyudon Rice Bowl, and Earl thinks the tempura served over at Tempura Grill is better. But in my opinion, I liked Ramen X's tempura compared to a lot others we've tried. What we did agree on was that the rice bowls had more rice than toppings so we eneded up ordering another appetizer:

Ebi Tempura - Php 99

What Earl really enjoyed was the ramen which had a rather generous serving size:

Karaage Ramen - Php 99

As I've mentioned, there are better versions of these dishes, but for the price it's a nice alternative to the usually pricey Japanese restaurants.

Café Mary Grace

In years past, I used to frequent bazaars and would usually see the Mary Grace booth selling mostly ensaymadas. They then expanded to mall booths and have since put up a café. It made me wonder, are their pastries that spectacular? It took awhile for me to try their ensaymada as it's not my favorite snack, but once I finally succumbed, I understood. It was really good!

I've since gone on to try their other menu items and my current favorite is their Black Velvet Cake - this is the dessert I buy whenever I need to give a gift or contribute to a potluck meal.

Black Velvet Cake - Php 100

Apple Cinnamon Iced Tea - Php 75

Think of a really rich, moist chocolate cake slathered in cream cheese frosting - this always makes me forget that I should be on a diet! I paired it with their Apple Cinnamon Iced Tea for something light to counter the decadence. Take note that I have a humongous sweet tooth which means that my tolerance for sugar is higher than most. Here are the other things we ordered:

Three Cheese Ensaymada - Php 163

Everyone who I've introduced this ensaymada to has loved it. It's a no-fail, albeit expensive, merienda to feast on. There's also a Laguna Cheese version which is equally as good.

Muscovado & Chocolate Coffee - Php 124

Our friend Jojo ordered this and liked it. Along with the ensaymada, it made him wonder why he had never tried Café Mary Grace before.

There are no pictures, but worth mentioning, Earl had the Tsoknut Chocolate (Php 80) which is basically native cocoa infused with a locally popular chocolate and peanut candy called Choc Nut. We both agreed that the hot chocolate tasted like the liquid version of the grounded peanut treat. Abbie, on the other hand had the Peppermint and Fruits Iced Tea (Php 75), which she liked but said that it does not go with the Black Velvet Cake.