Rattle Shake Grill
501 Cottage Rd., South Portland
747-4089
rattleshakegrill.com
Salt and sand litter our mudroom floors, snowbanks have morphed into giant charcoaled moon rocks, and navigating greasy brick sidewalks is Portland’s Winter Olympics of 2026. We’ve mostly been stuck indoors and sometimes feel we can rally no more — the winter doldrums.
But good news! A recent non-scientific study showed that three out of three middle-aged women tested were able to completely alleviate these seasonal symptoms by ingesting salt, fats and sugar. Throw in a few splashes of booze and some of these cat-loving subjects even momentarily forgot about the climate crisis and how a certain regime is currently making it much worse.
This research was conducted at Rattle Shake Grill, formerly A&C Soda Shop, in South Portland. Originally a different kind of “filling station,” this cute retro restaurant recalls the happy days of the 1950s, when Americans were still high from their great and final (or so they quaintly thought) victory over fascism. Yet another gateway to escapism! Plus, the real Olympics were on TV! LFG!
With nothing even resembling Olympic training in our futures, my friends and I deep-fried our starters, and one of us (not me) got one of Rattle Shake’s delicious signature cocktails, the Dill Pickle Margarita ($14). We dipped a Midwestern favorite, Fried Cheese Curds ($8), in the spicy mayo that came with them and Rattle Shake’s addictive homemade ranch dressing.
Apparently, numerous rival research teams had worked here over the preceding weekend and consumed all the fried Calamari ($10) and Tuna Wontons ($15), so we shared a Garden Salad ($10) for some fiber and doused it with more homemade ranch. I and my fellow non-drinker quaffed a couple sweet and tangy Herbal Tonics ($8): Strawberry Thyme for my friend and Honey Basil for me. They were damn tasty.
I ordered the Mushroom Swiss Burger ($18) with horseradish sauce, which was also damn tasty, and we made the Rattle Burger ($17) woke with an Impossible Burger subbing for beef. It rivaled, if not surpassed, the BK version.
Rattle Shake has three chicken sandwiches on its menu (Classic, Dill Swiss and Spicy) that all look as sexy on Instagram as Luigi in a pair of cuffs. The Dill Swiss ($17) — which we thought, to our hilarity, should be called the “Big Dill” — was everything you’d want between a toasted, soft brioche bun: crunch from the fried chicken breast, crisp lettuce and pickles, melty Swiss cheese and, you guessed it, more ranch.
More good news: the shakes ($5/$7)! Flavors include chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, banana, salted caramel, and coffee, and if you ask nicely, they might do a little mixy-mixy for you, like they did to make our mocha shake. And the floats ($7)! These come in traditional root beer, Coca-Cola, and orange creamsicle flavors, plus original mixes like the Kier Royal (grape soda and vanilla) and the Omg (orange soda and chocolate syrup). If doldrums persist, you can add booze for a few more bucks!
No need to call your doctor the next morning. Spring is almost here, and Election Day is coming. We got this.
Rattle Shake Grill is open Sun.-Thurs. from noon to 8 p.m., Fri. & Sat. from noon to 9 p.m.
