Foodie Rating: Three-and-a-half stars.

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My first taste of Sango! was in their Makati branch (near Little Tokyo).  Although I enjoyed the food, I have to admit that the location was a bit far to my liking.  So you can only imagine how happy I was when I discovered that a new branch of Sango! sprouted up in my home turn, down south.

Sango! The Burger Master is located at G/F South Supermarket, Alabang-Zapote Road, Muntinlupa City.

My usual Sango! order would be their Yakiniku Rice Burger, but today I decided to try out the other burger selections on display.  Browsing through the menu, I decided to opt for the spicy version of their signature Master Burger, and some fries and milk tea to neutralize the spice. 

Reacquainting myself with the Master Burger made me realize how much I missed their signature sauce.  The sweet meaty sauce reminded me of the American Sloppy Joe (nagfe-feeling lang kasi hindi pa naman talaga ako nakakain ng ganun ever), or even the Pinoy-style spaghetti sauce.  The jalapeno peppers that they used to add hotness to the burger seemed to work just right with the sauce, and the added crisp of the peppers contributed to the different textures while eating the burger.

Recently-recruited foodie buddy Louie, who ordered the Master Cheeseburger (first time kasi) was quite unfortunate with his first order because 1) He wasn't able to specify that there should be no onions in his burger (was I able to mention that he doesn't eat vegetables?), and that 2) During his quest to remove onions in his burger, he discovered a piece of hair IN the sauce. We had to return the burger to the counter, which turned out to be a blessing of some sorts, because that way they prepared a new burger for him, this time without the onions.  After all that hassle, he was able to enjoy his burger, onion-free and abundant with meat sauce.

We also like the milk tea, because it tasted like brewed tea with milk.  Not the commercial Nestle kind, but actual brewed tea. With milk.  I'm not sure how this compares to Lipton Milk Tea, but nevertheless, Sango! serves good milk tea.

The ambiance of the place is very Japanese as well.  Anime is shown in flat screen TVs, manga and Japanese magazines are placed in shelves for the customers' browsing convenience, and they even give out origami to people.  And oh, the restrooms.  Special mention goes to the restrooms equipped with Japanese super toilet bowls. Every first-time Sango! customer should try them out.

If not for the hair in Louie's burger, our Sango! dining experience would hands down be an enjoyable one.  In fairness, they were able to replace the burger free of charge.  I just hope that this is just an unfortunate incident, lest I be compelled to look into my burgers every time I order one at Sango!.