I think the workflow isn't that bad actually, there is an extra step but that will hopefully be shortened with the Raw support coming to Premiere Pro in October (for those using PP). I love being able to go into ACR and haven't found a better way to recover the shadows / highlights. Just my humble opinion.
Example of what ML Raw has done for me:
http://vimeo.com/71505981
Example of what ML Raw has done for me:
http://vimeo.com/71505981