In-N-Out Burgers,[4][5] doing business as In-N-Out Burger, is an American regional chain of fast food restaurants with locations primarily in California and to a lesser extent the West Coast and Southwest.[6] It was founded in Baldwin Park, California, in 1948 by Harry (1913–1976) and Esther Snyder (1920–2006). The chain is headquartered in Irvine, California, and has expanded outside Southern California into the rest of California, as well as into Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Texas, Oregon, Colorado, Idaho, Washington, and Tennessee, and is planning expansion into New Mexico.[7][8][9] The current owner is Lynsi Snyder, the Snyders' only grandchild.
As the chain has expanded, it has opened several distribution centers in addition to its original Baldwin Park location. The new facilities, located in Lathrop, California; Phoenix, Arizona; Draper, Utah; Dallas, Texas; and Colorado Springs, Colorado, will provide for potential future expansion into other parts of the country.[10][11][12]
In-N-Out Burger has chosen not to franchise its operations or go public; one reason is the prospect of food quality or customer consistency being compromised by excessively rapid business growth.[13] The In-N-Out restaurant chain has developed a highly loyal customer base,[14][15][16] and has been rated as one of the top fast food restaurants in several customer satisfaction surveys.[17][18][19]
History
First generation
In-N-Out Burger's first location was opened in the Los Angeles suburb of Baldwin Park, California, in 1948 by the Snyders[13] at the southwest corner of what is now the intersection of Interstate 10 and Francisquito Avenue. The restaurant was the first drive-thru hamburger stand in California, allowing drivers to place orders via a two-way speaker system.[13] This was a new and unique idea, since in post-World War II California, carhops were used to take orders and serve food.[20]
In 1951, a second In-N-Out was opened in Covina, California,[21] west of the intersection of Grand Avenue and Arrow Highway. The company remained a relatively small
Products
The In-N-Out menu consists of three burger varieties: hamburger, cheeseburger, and "Double-Double" (two hamburger patties and two slices of cheese). French fries and fountain drinks are available, as well as three flavors of milkshakes. The hamburgers come with lettuce, tomato, with or without onions (the customer is asked upon ordering, and may have them fresh or grilled), and a sauce, which is called "spread" (a Thousand Island dressing variant).
There are additional named items not on the menu, but available at every In-N-Out. These variations reside on the chain's "secret menu", though the menu is accessible on the company's website. These variations include 3×3 (which has three patties and three slices of cheese), 4×4 (four patties and four slices of cheese), Neapolitan shakes, grilled cheese sandwich (consists of the same ingredients as the burgers except the meat, plus two slices of melted cheese), Protein Style (wrap with lettuce; consists of the same ingredients as the burgers except buns), and Animal Style (cooked in a thin layer of mustard, adding condiments including pickles, grilled onions, and extra spread). Animal Style fries come with two slices of melted cheese, spread, and grilled onions on top. Whole or sliced chili peppers are also available by request.[77] Both Protein and Animal Style are house specialties that the company has trademarked because of their association with the chain.
Until 2005, In-N-Out accommodated burger orders of any size by adding patties and slices of cheese at an additional cost. A particularly famous incident involving a 100×100 (100 patties, 100 slices of cheese) occurred in 2004.[78]
Store design and layout
The signature colors for In-N-Out are white, red, and yellow. The white is used for the buildings' exterior walls and the employees' basic uniform. Red is used for the buildings' roofs and the employees' aprons and hats. Yellow is used for the decorative band on the roof and iconic arrow in the logo. However, variations in the color scheme do occur.[83][84]
The first In-N-Outs had a common design, placing the kitchen "stand" between two lanes of cars. The "front" lane is nearest the street and the "back" lane away from the street. This location design is known as a double drive-thru. A metal awning provides shade for several tables for customers desiring to park and eat, but there is no indoor dining. A walk-up window faces the parking area. These restaurants store food and supplies in a separate building, and it is not uncommon for a driver to be asked to wait a moment while employees carry supplies to the kitchen across the rear lane.
This design is a popular image on In-N-Out ads and artwork, which often shows classic cars such as 1965 Mustangs and 1968 Firebirds visiting the original restaurants. The original Covina restaurant, located on Arrow Highway west of Grand Avenue, was forced to close in the early 1990s due to re-engineering and development of the area. A modern design, drive-up/dining room restaurant was built a few hundred feet away. The replacement building was considerably larger, occupying nearly half the area of the original building's lot.
Newer In-N-Out restaurants are based on standardized templates or blueprints, which are selected based on available space and expected traffic levels.
Advertising
Like other fast-food chains, In-N-Out uses roadside billboards that direct customers to the nearest location. Billboard ads display an image of the trademarked Double-Double burger. The chain uses short radio commercials, often limited to the song "In-N-Out, In-N-Out. That's what a hamburger's all about." Television commercials, which are less common, feature the hamburger's visual appeal. In-N-Out seldom uses celebrities in ads, although John Cleese and John Goodman have voiced radio spots. In the past, the Snyders also sponsored Christmas music programming with voice-overs expressing the meaning of the holiday.
In addition to commercials, In-N-Out benefits from enthusiastic fans who talk to each other. For many years, it has given customers free bumper stickers, which simply say "In-N-Out Burger"[86] but are commonly modified to say "In-N-Out urge".[87] The company helps devoted customers advertise its brand by selling souvenir clothing with the In-N-Out logo.[88] Celebrity fans and free endorsements in mass media also promote the business. When Heisman Trophy winner and Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith raved about In-N-Out cheeseburgers during a press conference before the 2007 BCS National Championship Game, a senior executive said: "It does not get much better than that for us. We're kind of a small company, and we do not have any celebrity endorsers. But I think we just got the best one we could have."
Culture
Popularity
The restaurant has achieved popularity which has led to celebration by some when brought to new locations, and the opening of a new restaurant often becomes an event. When one opened in Scottsdale, Arizona, there was a four-hour wait for food, and news helicopters whirled above the parking lot.[92] When the first location in the state of Colorado opened in Aurora in 2020 wait times exceeded fourteen hours and local police had to assist with traffic control.[93][94]
The chain's image has also made it popular in some unusual ways. For example, In-N-Out is still considered acceptable in some areas with strong opposition to corporate food restaurants, such as McDonald's. Commercial leaders in San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf district said they opposed every other fast-food chain except In-N-Out because they wanted to maintain the flavor of family-owned, decades-old businesses in the area, with one saying locals would ordinarily "be up in arms about a fast-food operation coming to Fisherman's Wharf," but "this is different."
Legal and policy issues
Rich Boyd lawsuit (2006)
In 2006, a lawsuit exposed a possible family disagreement over the chain's corporate leadership. Richard Boyd, one of In-N-Out's vice presidents and co-trustee of two-thirds of the company stock, accused Lynsi Snyder (then known as Lynsi Martinez) and allied corporate executives of trying to force out Esther Snyder and attempting to fire Boyd unreasonably. Pre-empting the suit, Martinez, Snyder, and Taylor appeared in a December video message to employees, telling them not to believe everything they hear.[14] The company then responded with a lawsuit of its own, alleging Boyd had construction work done on his personal property and charged it to the company, as well as favoring contractors with uncompetitive bids.[15] Boyd was then suspended from his role as co-trustee and Northern Trust Bank of California took his place (as co-trustee) until a hearing set for May 10, 2006. However, in April, the judge dismissed two of In-N-Out's claims against Boyd. A trial date of October 17, 2006, was set but never occurred, and a settlement was reached out of court.[109] Ultimately, Boyd was permanently removed from his role as an employee and co-trustee.
Chadder's infringement lawsuit (2007)
Charity
In-N-Out Burgers Foundation
In-N-Out Burgers Foundation (known from March 13–April 14 1995 as The In-N-Out Foundation)[169][170] is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded on March 13, 1995,[171][172] and classified as a "Human Services: Fund Raising & Fund Distribution" organization under the NTEE system.[173] Based in Irvine, California, the foundation "supports organizations that provide residential treatment, emergency shelter, foster care, and early intervention for children in need". Its grant-making activities are restricted to eligible nonprofit groups that are located or provide services in areas where In-N-Out has a presence.
Original restaurant
The first In-N-Out restaurant that opened in 1948 was demolished when Interstate 10 (then US 60/US 70/US 99, the Ramona Freeway, now the San Bernardino Freeway) was built from downtown Los Angeles to the San Gabriel Valley. The freeway runs over the original location. A new restaurant was completed in 1954 near the original Baldwin Park, California, location. It was closed in November 2004 and demolished on April 16, 2011, despite discussions about using it as an In-N-Out museum chronicling the origins and history of the company.[180] In-N-Out built a replacement restaurant on the other side of the freeway next to the original In-N-Out University (opened in 1984). A new In-N-Out University was built on the property. The university building houses the training department, which was moved from Irvine, California. In addition, the company restaurant was moved from In-N-Out's Baldwin Park headquarters to the new lot, which holds the restaurant and university, less than a thousand feet away. In 2014, a replica of the first In-N-Out was built in Baldwin Park.[181]
Awards and honors
In-N-Out Burger was ranked number 28 among America's Best Employers 2019 by Forbes.[182] According to a survey by Glassdoor in 2014, In-N-Out Burger ranked No. 8 on its annual list of the 50 best places to work in the U.S. and the U.K.[183] The company reached No. 6 in Glassdoor's 2024 Top 100 Ranking.[184]
See also
Further reading
External links
References
- Top 500 In-N-Out Burger Restaurant Business Online, retrieved December 17, 2023^
- In-N-Out Burger Forbes, retrieved January 30, 2021^
- Lynsi Snyder. Instagram^