This gourmet appetizer was inspired by Waffle House hashbrowns

According to Executive Chef Jacob Stull, the most popular appetizer at Rêve, Birmingham, Alabama’s first-ever tasting menu restaurant, was inspired by a late-night Southern favorite: the “scattered, smothered, and covered” hash browns at Waffle House. Rêve’s potato rösti (a rustic dish of Swiss origin) is essentially a fancy version of hash browns. To make it, shredded potatoes are folded with aged Gruyère, butter, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika, then steamed in vacuum-sealed bags to bind it all together. After frying the rösti to crisp perfection, it’s plated on Périgourdine, a jus made with black truffles and wine reduction. The appetizer is topped with gribiche, a sauce combining mayonnaise, preserved lemons, capers, cornichons, shallots, and fresh herbs. Finally, it’s garnished with sustainable Kaluga caviar and seasonal microgreens. “It’s a nice share—it’s not small by any means,” says Stull, who suggests balancing out the rich flavor with a glass of Brocard Pierre Tradition, a clean and crisp sparkling wine from France’s Alsace region. When developing the menu, Stull says he wanted to find a way to elevate the humble dish. “And what’s not to love about potatoes, truffles, and caviar?”

This article appears in the Fall 2025 issue of Southbound.

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