Whenever I've made it in the past week my mother, we would always make the sauce from scratch using a bechamel sauce with a good amount of shredded cheddar and maybe some pepper jack cheese. We liked things really cheesey so we'd do a cup of more of shredded cheese to each cup of sauce, and you just stir it in while it's hot.

We'd then mix that with cooked pasta in a butter lined dish and cover with bread crumbs that also got cheese and butter on top. Drop that in an oven on like, maybe 275 or something and let it all incorporate.

If you want more seasoning besides like, pepper in the bechamel, maybe some nutmeg or garlic profile would work pretty well here. There's also lobster or ham Mac and cheese that could lend itself to it's own seasoning profiles.

Another fun way to use a cheesy bechamel is to add a half or whole jar of chunky salsa to it and some pickled jalapenos for a killer cheese dip for corn chips or as a sauce over nachos!

Oh, and the classic meal we'd do with that Mac and cheese was to fry up a ham steak, some green side (collard greens, broccoli, or maybe some roasted brussel sprouts), and this recipe for candied tomatoes that was so amazing...

You take a can of peeled San Marzano tomatoes, drain and squeeze about half the juice out of them, and you sliver onion. You combine with a moderate amount of brown sugar and a lot of pepper in a baking dish and throw it in the oven at 350 till the tomatoes cook down... It's been forever but I think 15 minutes would do it (you can time it with the Mac and cheese at the same time).

The bite of those sweet tomatoes with the cheese Mac and the salty ham with the bitter greens is like, 10000% comfort food mode

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/s.....-cheese-sauce/

This recipe is for nacho cheese dip but I bet it would be great for Mac and cheese as well. I like to make it with white cheese - very creamy!

A mix of smoked gouda, cheddar, and swiss at least with cream or plain Greek yogurt is a start. If possible, use truffle oil in it too. That will change everything. You can throw in some paprika along with salt and pepper for a little seasoning. Maybe add some bacon to it as well.

Here's a link to a literal "Award Winning" mac and cheese wuffy made several years ago.
This one isn't an oven-baked version, it was finished in a smoker. But the oven baking part is VERY easy to add on to the end of the recipe. And the smoker isn't essential.

https://www.furaffinity.net/view/19545263/

Thiat one has multiple cheeses and a nice assortment of spices and herbs to punch up the flavor. The smoke really brings a nice touch as well, but isn't essential. And if you add some Panko bread crumbs + butter + grated Parmesan cheese to the top an bake it in a regular oven instead of finishing it in a smoker, it ought to give you the result you're looking for!

Bon Appetite!