Menu Description: “Our house specialty with cream, jalapenos and cheddar cheese.”

These slightly spicy au gratin potatoes are cooked at a low heat several hours in advance of the dinner house’s evening opening. When an order for the signature side comes into the kitchen a generous serving of the potatoes is portioned out, topped with grated sharp cheddar cheese, and baked again at a higher temperature until browned. The real trick here is to slice the potatoes very thin – 1/16 of an inch to be exact – and the only way to do that is with a slicing contraption such as a mandoline. The rest of the prep involves making a basic béchamel sauce using cream, and then carefully layering the sauce and sliced potatoes in the baking dish. The potatoes are baked for 2 hours and then chilled in the restaurant, so this can be a great make-ahead dish for entertaining. Although you can also serve the potatoes immediately by topping them with cheese, cranking up the oven, and heading straight into the second baking step.