The Holy Grail of the hamburger.
The sacred home of the double double, animal style and spread.
A family-owned burger joint founded in the Golden State which stayed true to its roots.
No nationwide expansion or mass saturation of the market, a fast-food place with a reputation for quality and simplicity which refused to compromise its standards for industrial scale profits – although it made more than enough money in the process.
Its notoriety and success built on a small menu, the freshness of its ingredients, impeccable customer service, and affordability.
In-N-Out has an almost mythical status in California.
Popularity doesn’t always equal greatness, and whenever something is omnipresent and liked, the Public Enemy song ‘Don’t Believe the Hype’ always enters my mind.
Not that I’m advocating taking advice from a wide eyed lunatic with a massive clock dangling from his neck – shout out to the one and only Flavor Flav – but before delving into the ins and outs of the place with the big yellow arrow and crossed palm trees excuse me for slightly changing the menu.
My first experience of fast food – like many in Scotland – was Wimpy, a chain which enjoyed short lived success in America before being established across the pond.
I don’t recall the table service, more the image of mascot Mr Wimpy, an oversized plastic beefeater, being pummelled and battered by wee tykes at children’s parties.
Pity the poor employee that drew the short straw to wear the costume which ensured a sweaty hour of misery at the merciless hands and feet of burger fuelled rascals.
The image of one poor dude, who was left to fend off half a dozen overexcited weans that delighted in bopping his big red nose at the chain’s Sauchiehall Street branch in Glasgow, remains in my memory. As far as I can remember I loved Wimpy burgers but back then I would have probably eaten more or less anything and enjoyed it.
McDonalds – I know it’s sacrilege to name a direct competitor (although it’s laughable to mention them in the same sentence as In-N-Out) – never captured my imagination and its over advertised burgers often left a sour taste in the mouth. An initial off-putting experience of biting into a burger with graphic ‘meat is murder’ campaign leaflets scattered within eyeshot made it a meal to forget.
I did indulge as a poor student and tried it again in California but there’s absolutely nothing special about the largely flavourless fare from the fading golden arches.
Burger King was slightly better but unremarkable in many aspects, and only notable for its cheapness and convenience, as the quality often drastically varied.
As a sports reporter tasked with driving on a deathtrap road up and down Scotland, a stop at Kentucky Fried Chicken in Perth broke up tediously precarious journeys on the bloody A9 – not that it ever tasted particularly great.
Perhaps it’s a shameful admission (at least to some Americans) that I developed a taste for Taco Bell on an extraordinary first trip to America in 1990.
I was absolutely taken aback as we ordered food at the talking sign in Syracuse, New York – the drive through intercom concept invented by In-N-Out founder Harry Snyder – and the soft chicken tacos became a favourite.
I was so smitten that I sought out Taco Bells in New York City, Toronto and even in Seoul, South Korea. Although after talking to my US colleagues at the private English school where I taught in Gyeonggi-do, the reaction to my Bell obsession was tepid at best.
They warned me that I was more likely to experience diarrhoea than delight and even retold horror stories of suffering bouts of food sickness after eating tacos from the Bell.
Of course, I was aware of the existence of In-N-Out, but it was only after teaching a set of English literature lessons to bored Korean kids that I fully learned of its reputation for excellence.
Fast Food Nation paints a nightmarish portrait of the fast-food industry in America yet reserves praise for the Californian chain.
Reading is one thing and tasting is another, but there was no prospect of sampling anything from In-N-Out until I made the big move to the Golden State three years ago.
There was no time to waste, within an hour of landing at LAX I was sitting outside the Signal Hill branch with a double double and fries.
I was immediately converted. Any doubts dispelled. It was genuinely the best burger I had ever eaten.
Of course there’s the danger of being overindulgent, yet without exaggeration it was on a different taste wavelength to the other barely edible concoctions served up by the well-known fast-food names.
It wasn’t soaked in grease, or dripping in fat and there was an almost perfect balance between the meat, lettuce, tomato, and pickles. The bun was neither too soft nor crispy and although initially unsure about the spread I quickly grew to love it.
Everything was freshly made, and worth waiting for regardless of the time it took, including the fries which were light and best eaten while piping hot.
There’s a danger that this all reads like an advertorial, but after going back to In-N-Out several times at different locations throughout California, and trying most, if not all, of their rivals, it only underlined how much better they are than the so-called competition.
Priced reasonably and with just three main items – a hamburger, cheeseburger and double-double – the relatively sparse menu is a huge advantage.
Most fast-food menus offer a bamboozling array of choices, which often blend into one, but In-N-Out focuses on just a few things and does it exceptionally well.
There’s also a not so secret menu in which you can essentially customize burgers, which includes animal style (with extra pickles, spread, grilled onions and mustard fried on the patty) and protein style (the bun is replaced by lettuce) among other options, and nothing is ever too much trouble.
You can actually look into the kitchen; it’s not closed off or partially obscured.
There’s a cleanliness that you can observe, everyone is dressed smartly and focused on their jobs. It’s all intentional but it is effective.
In-N-Out doesn’t deliver which requires going into the restaurant or waiting in usually long queues in your car. It’s no real hardship.
At the drive through you don’t talk to the sign any more as an actual human takes your order while you wait in line.
The colour scheme of red and white, the symbolic palm trees and the iconic yellow sign all adds to the atmosphere.
It’s something of a quintessential Californian experience and one that doesn’t rely on heavy advertising.
Life in the USA is a daily barrage of largely nauseating commercials, an unavoidable irritation even if you steadfastly try to ignore them.
There are so many during the coverage of American football and basketball games that it almost becomes permanently seared into your brain, especially the innumerable fast-food ads.
A shockwave of colour and outrageously fabricated statements that function as a hypnotising mantra.
The message preaches incomparable excellence: every meal will be the best one you have ever eaten in this lifetime or any other one.
The reality is far more tasteless and dingy. A sickly composition of undercooked meat, a soggy mess of slimy limp greens masquerading as vegetables all jammed between hardened cardboard like something that has been lying out for hours and shoved in a microwave.
In-N-Out are notable by their absence on the old advertising front, perhaps there’s no need. Word of mouth suffices. There are people from all walks of life, from across the age spectrum, and of numerous ethnicities at every branch I have visited.
There is a strict adherence to maintaining standards, with every restaurant close to distribution centres, which guarantees a uniformity at each location.
Nothing is pre-packaged or shipped in from thousands of miles away.
A move into Tennessee – with the crossed palm trees also a presence in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Oregon, Colorado, Idaho, and Washington – caused a mild ripple of consternation but In-N-Out will always be a California institution.
Whether you are in San Diego, Oceanside, Buena Park, Long Beach, or Inglewood (among the branches I have been to) there is no discernible change in quality or service.
Ignoring a wider debate about the health benefits of consuming any kind of fast food – it’s not as if I eat it every day – I became something of a fan, even joining an In-N-Out Facebook group for enthusiasts of the chain.
I took it a step further by making a trip to a replica of In-N-Out’s first drive through stand in Baldwin Park located just outside of Los Angeles.
Dating back to 1948, although the model has been moved as a freeway overpass was built in the original location, it’s a testimony to the dedication and innovation of Harry and Esther Snyder. It’s a miracle they survived the heat in the tiny kitchen and that they were able to ensure a high-quality product in such cramped conditions.
The mini museum has all the features from the original stand, including a cigarette machine and the groundbreaking first drive through.
Helpful and informative guide Kenny (give him a bonus) answered all my questions on a scorching day as I marvelled at the price board with burgers for just 25 cents.
Despite the move into the south, Kenny didn’t think that owner Lynsi Snyder (the only granddaughter of Harry and Esther) would ever consider stretching further to the East Coast of America, never mind overseas.
They could make a killing as a slightly rebranded In-N-Oot, based in Scotland with burgers made of the best Aberdeen Angus beef, the finest Orkney Scottish cheddar cheese and served on a morning roll. Stornoway black pudding (blood sausage) and potato scones would be irresistible extras on the secret menu. In a nation addicted to takeaways and fast food it would be an instant hit.
Copycat ideas aside I was content to enjoy a double double and fries at the Baldwin Park branch nearby the replica of the first hamburger stand and buy a t-shirt at the official shop nearby. I loved the retro designs especially those featuring classic cars and colourful Californian sunsets.
In an often incomprehensible and baffling world it is comforting to know that the small things still make a difference.
Most fast food leaves me bloated and somewhat sickly, I actually feel content after eating an In-N-Out burger, and it remains a reliable and eagerly anticipated treat anywhere in the wonderful state of California.
@skasiewicz.bsky.social
Stephen Kasiewicz 