In-N-Out Burger serves a simple menu of burgers and fries and is open for late breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
In-N-Out Burger was established in 1948 by husband and wife team, Harry and Esther Snyder. The first restaurant was located in Baldwin Park, California. It is a family-owned American regional chain of fast food restaurants with 358 locations as of 2022 and located primarily in the state of California and other locations in the Southwest. In-N-Out Burger is also credited for being the first drive-through restaurant in California, where they used a 2-way speaker box.
One of the mottos of the restaurant is: "Our customer is everything." Though the menu is simple, with only 4 items, customers are allowed to request anything they want to eat from the restaurant's ingredients, such as ordering patties with a slice of cheese, putting 2 to 4 patties in a burger, or ordering only the patty with no buns.
What Makes In-N-Out Burger Different?
In-N-Out's founder, Harry Snyder, has a famous motto: "Keep it simple, do one thing, and do it the best you can." The burger joint is famous for offering a simple menu with only burgers and fries. Though there are only four items on the menu, the restaurant is known for its culture of serving high-quality burgers. Harry was known to hit the markets at dawn searching for the best meats of beef, as well as hand chopping potatoes for the fries, and molding the patties on his own.
Since 1948 and until the present, the restaurant has stayed with this tradition, as well as using the very same recipes and ingredients in their food. No new items on the menu have been added, and until today, potatoes are still being cut into fries at the restaurant locations. Patties are made in facilities that are at least 300 miles (ca. 483 km) from the vicinity of a restaurant.
In-N-Out Burger also remains to be a family-owned business, as they have no intentions of having the restaurant franchised due to their commitment to making sure the quality of food is always up to their standards. Friendly customer service is always the same in all of their locations.
In-N-Out's menu is elementary, they only offer the following:
- Double-Double Burger
- Hamburger
- Cheeseburger
- Fries
They also offer the following drinks:
- Soft drinks
- Lemonade
- Shakes
- Coffee
- Milk
- Hot Cocoa
Though these are the only items on the menu, customers can order what they want. Because of this, the restaurant has developed a secret menu that they don't post but is popular among its patrons.
This is also one of the reasons why the burger joint is so popular, as modifying its menu to serve the needs of its customers creates a connection and relationship with its customer base. People who only want protein can order burgers without the bun, while those who don't eat red meat can order a cheese sandwich, and kids who only want to eat the bun and patty can request that, too.
Does In-N-Out Burger Cater to Vegetarians?
In-N-Out is not vegetarian-friendly with all of its meat-focused menu items and burgers. However, they do have a couple of options that vegetarians can eat, but they’re very limited with only a single sandwich that is vegetarian-friendly, which is their secret menu Grilled Cheese. Otherwise, you’d have to go for just their shakes or beverages to get a vegetarian meal.
No.
Though there are only 4 items on the menu, the restaurant does have a secret menu consisting of some of the most popular and most-requested modifications of their burgers and fries.
Here are some of the items in In-N-Out's secret menu:
- Protein Style: No buns, only patty, cheese, and lettuce.
- 4 x 4: Four burger patties instead of one.
- Flying Dutchman: Two patties and 2 slices of cheese, no bun.
- Scooby Snack: Patty only.
- Mustard Grilled Burger: A squirt of mustard is added to the patty and cooked on the grill.
- Animal Fries: Regular fries are served with In-N-Out's secret spread, melted cheese, and caramelized onions.
- Roadkill Fries: Regular fries are served with Animal Sauce plus beef patty crumbs on top.
- Grilled Cheese: Bun and a slice of cheese.
- Cheesy Fries: Regular fries with melted cheese on top.
- Neapolitan Shake: Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry mixed into one smoothie.
- Arnold Palmer: 60% pink lemonade and 40% iced tea.
- Lemon Up: 80% pink lemonade and 20% 7Up
What Makes the In-N-Out Burger So Good?
The In-N-Out burger is so good because the restaurant only uses fresh ingredients. Vegetables such as lettuce and tomatoes are prepared on-site and fresh every day.
As for the bun, they are made by a different company, which is Puritan Bakery, another family owned, Southern California institution. The bun they use is sponge dough bread, which involves a 7-hour bread baking process.
In-N-Out Burger also features a good meat-to-cheese and meat-to-bun ratio, where no ingredient overpowers the other. The buns have the right amount of thickness that doesn't hide the beef or cheese, and the patty has the appropriate amount of flavor and size that allows the richness of the bun to be savored.
And lastly, and most importantly, the beef. In-N-Out doesn't freeze its patties. There are no freezers or microwave ovens in the restaurants, and all the patties are handmade from the company's patty-making facilities. They use 100% USDA ground chunks that are free of preservatives, fillers, or additives. The patties are hand-molded and delivered to the different branches within their vicinity.
No In-N-Out restaurant is located outside the 300-mile radius of the company's patty-making facility, ensuring freshness each day. If it takes a day to deliver patties to a certain location, they won't open a branch in that location.
Is In-N-Out Burger Spicy?
No. Their meals are not spicy, and none of the sauces or ingredients have any significant heat. There’s just one exception: you can ask for chili peppers on your orders, either whole or sliced. So, if you want to crank up the heat to the stratosphere, you can just ask for a number of full chili peppers and enjoy the spiciness.
Is In-N-Out Burger Healthy?
Despite their attention to the quality of their ingredients, most of their hamburgers are not super healthy since they’re high in calories and saturated fat, though eating in moderation is completely fine.
Outside their burgers, they don’t have many healthy options either – sodas, french fries, and milkshakes aren’t exactly the healthiest options around.
On top of these factors, In-N-Out Burger’s ingredient list is secret, so you can’t be 100% sure of how healthy each component of its food is.
With that said, you can mitigate this a bit by asking for the right order. For instance, instead of asking for their triple patty or quad patty burgers, you can go for the standard ones. You can also browse their secret menu for healthier options like Grilled Cheese and the Protein Style.
Can You Order In-N-Out Online?
No, you can't order In-N-Out online, and they don't deliver. They are also not affiliated with any delivery platforms since they can't ensure the time of delivery, as well as guarantee the handling and safety of their food.
DoorDash was sued by the company when it offered to deliver In-N-Out burgers without authorization.
Can I Cook In-N-Out Burger at Home?
No. In-N-Out Burger does not offer any cook-at-home or use-at-home products, and the fact that the ingredients and recipes they use have not been shared publicly makes it harder to replicate their food at home.
What are the Opening Hours of In-N-Out Burger?
The opening hours of In-N-Out Burger are 1030am to 130am from Monday to Sunday, but may vary depending on the location.
Where Can You Find In-N-Out Burger?
In-N-Out is only available in the United States. They do not have locations in any other countries. They have over 300 locations, mostly in the Southwestern region. They have locations in the states of California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Utah, Colorado, and Oregon.