Ranchero's Grill and Seafood Restaurant, SM City, Gensan Branch

As I practically grew up in General Santos City, Ranchero Grill has always been a familiar name. People always talked about how good their Bulalo is as well as their Baby Back Ribs. They were also known to serve unusual fruits for desert namely Honey Dew Melon and Dragonfruit which were said to be grown by the owner himself. Of course these same people never failed to mention how expensive the meals are.
But as Gensan grew as a city, prices of commodities rose, cost of living increased. And with SM City came a sudden influx of new restaurants. People also got used to eating out. Ranchero probably didn't change their prices much so it's more affordable now than it was 10 years ago.

Ranchero Nuevo is the new name of the place I think. The restaurant is basically mexican themed and the waiters and servers are clad in a mexican outfit: with a fancy hat and cowboy shoes. 
Throughout the years, the restaurant chain grew so they now have branches in Davao too. When their new branch at SM City opened, we went as a family to check the place out. The goal was to try three of their much raved dishes: the Baby Back Ribs, Bulalo, and King Crabs.
Four our soup, we had this mixed seashell soup. I like how this has a lot flavor that tastes like it really came from the sea, without being too salty.

We first ordered kinilaw as an appetizer. The fish used was malasugue, which is abundant in General Santos City. This is a different sort of kinilaw than what I'm used to. It has mangoes, and it isn't as sour. It tastes like it has mayonnaise too. Over-all I like it.
This is their famous Baby Back Ribs which I find.. bland and dry. I had high expectations that it did not quite meet. It isn't as soft as I had wanted it to be. It's more expensive and yet not as good as Casa Verde's. 
Because we already have a soup, we tried their sizzling giant Bulalo rather than their famous traditional bulalo. This looks humongous in person but is unfortunately more bland than their Baby Back Ribs. It was also difficult to get the meat out. And it didn't had any bone marrow!

Their King Crabs was cooked well in a garlic-y sauce. It actually tastes good, but not extraordinarily good. There was nothing special in the recipe, and in my opinion, there are other restaurants in gensan that serves better crab.
We left the place dissatisfied.The last time my parents dined at the SM branch, my father got a really bad indigestion after trying their seafood platter.
I'm not giving up of Ranchero's Grill and Seafood Restaurants however. There are tons and tons of great reviews in the internet as well as from friends and they have to come from somewhere. I would like to try dining at their main branch or on one of their outlets in Davao instead someday. But as for the one in SM City Gensan, I'll not return.Such a shame as I think it is the most accessible branch they have in General Santos City.