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Tuesday, November 10, 2026Nov 10

Cool as a cucumber: Chattanooga restaurants offer dishes to help beat the heat

Photo by Matt Hamilton / Illustration by Matt McClane
Photo by Matt Hamilton / Illustration by Matt McClane Photo by Matt Hamilton / Illustration by Matt McClane

As summer’s hot weather grips the Southeast and temperatures make their annual march toward the century mark, it’s time to indulge in foods that can help us beat the heat.

Cooling foods such as cucumber, watermelon and mint naturally help lower body temperature. The healthy fats in avocado can actually help eliminate heat and toxins from your blood. Ice cream and other refreshing sweet treats let us escape the heat for a moment by indulging in a scoop or slurping a milkshake through a big, fat straw.

You may have seen similar “cool food” lists before, but here’s our take on some of the more refreshing foods available on menus around town this summer.

Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Ooltewah Whistlestop's general manager, Cassie Quintard, with the Rockin' Rainbow Milkshake
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Ooltewah Whistlestop’s general manager, Cassie Quintard, with the Rockin’ Rainbow Milkshake


Ooltewah Whistlestop