In-n-Out Burger
Founded in LA, this Irvine-based chain serves virtually perfect burgers, fries, and shakes - that's it
In the early 2000s, Southern California was ground zero for a burger war quite unlike the 1980s battle between McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s: This time, rivals In-N-Out (based in Irvine), Carl’s Jr. (then led in Anaheim), and Jack in the Box (San Diego) were angling to define the next generation of fast food. While Carl’s touted big, restaurant-style burgers at low prices, and Jack diversified its menu past burgers, In-N-Out chose a simple strategy: Stick to the old menu, selling little more than burgers, fries, and shakes, while focusing on quality to keep each traditional item great. A small “secret menu” – widely known – offers modest twists on the classics, including lettuce-wrapped “protein burgers” and multi-patty 3×3 or 4×4 cheeseburgers.
Fast forward to today, and In-N-Out clearly made the right choices: It has only grown its loyal customer base, so the famously long drive-through lines – a concept In-N-Out originally developed – continue, even though the number of locations have more than doubled from around 140 in the early 2000s to 400 today. The expansion has seen the chain expand from Southern California to Tennessee, though Orange County now has at least 30 locations spread across its cities. Unlike rivals, none of the locations are franchised, which has kept national expansion comparatively slow while preserving the company’s identity and culture.
Most importantly, everyone still loves the burgers. Whether you rank them as “best burgers” or “best fast food burgers,” they always taste the same – hearty meat patties with fresh lettuce leaves, perfect tomato slices, thick buns, and spread – while more or less resembling their promotional photos, unlike (most) other chains. In-n-Out’s fries have the right balance of crispiness and potato flavor without being overly salty, and its real ice cream shakes saturate straws.
Whenever we’re in the mood for burgers, this is where we typically go (unless we’re testing someplace else). Given the quality, prices have remained reasonable despite industry-wide inflation, and the friendly service experience is as remarkably unchanged as the food. After 75 years in business, In-N-Out is a rare example of how sticking to what works – even in the midst of strong pressures to change – can actually succeed, assuming people still want more. And there will always be demand for burgers.