There’s a side discussion about In-N-Out going on in the Chick-Fil-A thread. I felt like rather than continuing to hijack that thread, I’d start a new thread to discuss In-N-Out Burger.
I for one am a big fan of In-N-Out’s burgers. I think the key is that everything is so much fresher than you would get at any other fast food place. Someone in the other thread mentioned the lettuce and tomato being fresher, which is true. Also the buns are noticeably fresher than you get anywhere else. The patties are never frozen. And they don’t cook it until you order it. You’ll never get a burger that’s been sitting under a heat lamp for who knows how long.
Admittedly, the thousand island type sauce they use might not to everyone’s taste, but you can always customize your order and ask for ketchup and mustard or whatever your preference is instead.
I do think there’s so much hype about In-N-Out that some people get really high expectations, which is why some end up disappointed. But I don’t understand some people saying that they’re no better than McDonald’s.
Yeah, I think that’s intentional. They want you to see that they’re using real, fresh potatoes, not a bag of frozen fries. Which admittedly may be putting a little too much much emphasis on the “everything’s fresh!” ethos.
I had In-N-Out for the first time around 2011 or so and my impression was that it was a very good fast food burger and the fries were just acceptable. I think the hype comes from it being a local favorite for many, and that’s okay. I feel the same way about Whataburger. We don’t have one in Little Rock, we’re getting one later this year I think, and when my wife and I were in Fayetteville we saw a sign for one and I her pull off the highway so we could go. I wouldn’t do that for In-N-Out but I’d do it for Whataburger.
Speaking of In-N-Out, for a long time, they were only in California or neighboring states. As I remember their reasoning, the idea was that they only wanted restaurants close enough that they could supply burger patties without needing to freeze them for shipment. A few years ago, though, I think they opened locations in Texas. And recently I heard they are establishing a location in Tennessee so they have plans for the East Coast.
I think the burgers are good, but the fries are the best part. I like the unripened freshness. Obviously they need salt, but then so do McDonalds fries.
True. They have a number of locations in the Metroplex at least.
First time I had In-N-Out in Vegas and I thought it was meh.
Then I had it in San Fransisco, got it Animal Style, and LOVED it.
Then I had it in Dallas, got it Animal Style, and thought it was just pretty good.
I think it’s just better in California. If I had a choice of regional burger chains to expand to Illinois, I’d rather have Whataburger than In-N-Out.
Supposedly the reason they were reluctant to expand outside of California for so long was because they wanted to be near where the vegetables were grown, due to that whole emphasis on freshness. I’ve never had them outside of California, but if you say they’re not as good elsewhere then maybe there’s something to that.
The thing is, here in Chicago you still have plenty of old-school places that have the manual French fry cutter and you’ll see that potato go in and get cut up. But it goes into one fryer for a bit, then is left in the basket for a spell until it goes later into another fryer to crisp up and finish. So you won’t get the potato that was just cut up – you’ll get the one that already had the first-stage fry.
Also, doesn’t Five Guys have that, too, where you can see the potatoes pressed down into fries?
In other words, they can do a two-step fry and still show off the fresh potatoes they use.
I had a Whataburger recently again in Houston. For my tastes, it was mediocre at best. I had a decent experience with it in Phoenix about ten years ago with a green chile burger, but the other times I’ve tried it, just meh. In N Out for the win for me. I’m also not into super customizing my burger. Just give me your normal burger.
ETA: And, hey, Anthony Bourdain called it his favorite restaurant in LA and the only fast food chain he likes!
ETA2: Apparently Gordon Ramsey loves it, too, and prefers it to Shake Shack (which … I might disagree about that.)
Whataburger is majority owned by some capital conglomerate out of Chicago now, so the Texans can relax about defending their ‘local’ chain. It’s better than most fast food places but not something to go to war over.
In N Out has most of their Texas locations in Dallas, but there are some in the other cities, including the first one in the Houston area just a couple miles down the street from the house. And, yes, their expansion is generally limited by availability of fresh ingredients, especially beef. All the beef for their Texas locations is from a plant just south of Dallas, which is why most of their initial locations were in that area.
Yeah Five Guys does fresh. Again, it varies by franchise: the 5G in Portland burned their fries every time and I quit going there. We have one down the street here in MSP, and the fries are very good, but they tend to over-char the burgers. I’m very particular about my burgers, as life is too short to put up with most fast food joints, and I do love a good burger. I had a go-to place in Portland (actually two), but have yet to find a consistently good place near where I live now.
We don’t have In-N-Out in Canada but I’d be interested in the opinion of someone who’s had both In-N-Out and Harvey’s, a Canadian chain with a similar approach.
Harvey’s cooks the patties when ordered, on a grill over flame that imparts an outdoor-barbecue smokiness. The burgers are then garnished to order with the customer’s choice of any of 14 toppings and 10 sauces. I don’t overdo it, though, I typically just have ketchup, onion, tomato, and pickle – same as when I make burgers at home. The main difference is my patties are bigger, and likely much higher quality beef.
An In-N-Out just opened in our little podunk town. The next closest one is two hours away. When they here opened the crowds were so big traffic on the street in front was backed up for blocks. It was insane. After the newness died down my wife and I tried it and I was thoroughly underwhelmed. I have a very high threshold for disgust – I’ll happily eat cold SpaghettiO’s straight out of the can – but that burger was no better than McDonalds and the fries were greasy, soggy, and overly-salted. My disgust threshold had been met. My wife couldn’t even finish hers. I suppose the lettuce was fresher than the shredded crap that comes on a Quarter Pounder but that’s a very low bar. McDonalds also has decent quality whole-leaf lettuce that comes standard on their big chicken sandwiches, they’ll put it on their burgers if you request it so even there In-N-Out isn’t really a winner. I noticed no quality difference in their beef patty from what’s offered at McDonalds or Jack in the Box or Burger King.
I realized after it had been open for a while all the regulars appear to be California transplants – at least, everyone I now who fawned over it were originally from California. Since quality seems no better than the other chains nostalgia is my only explanation. Maybe the California locations are noticeably better, but this one sucks mightily.
I have always wanted to try Shake Shack, but I have not yet had the opportunity. There’s on in MSP airport, and I was hoping to have lunch there during my layover during my Christmas travel last year, but my inbound flight was late and I didn’t have time.
I have no California connections and I think it’s a top tier burger. Also, please note the chefs I mentioned who seem to hold it in high regard. Bourdain is from the East Coast; Ramsey is from the UK. I doubt they have any sort of nostalgic connection to the restaurant. They are among the experts in their field, and they both highly regard In N Out. To compare In N Out to McDonald’s is madness to me, pure madness. But here we are, with a couple of posters saying such. My mind explodes.
I have no doubt there are others who share it. I’ll take an In N Out over Shake Shack most any day because of the price difference. I don’t think the quality of Shake Shack is enough to justify doubling the price. The first Shake Shack burger I had sucked and was overcooked and too salty by half. The second was burger perfection with just the right amount of crispness on the edges and still juicy on the inside. It’s definitely positioning itself in the market as being a higher quality burger. I like those crispy edges – I don’t get them at In N Out, or not usually.
One thing I will add is that McDonalds, done right, can be very good. The trouble with McDonalds—and which I have never encountered at an In-N-Out—is that it is so often not done right, but rather overheated, stale, and dried out. McDonalds is like Russian roulette on a patty, only the odds are much worse than one in six in my experience.
ETA: As for Jack in the Box… I tried it for the first time in my life just this past summer. It was fine. But that’s the power of bad publicity: kill a few kids and you can lose a generation of potential customers.
I’m very particular about my burgers, as life is too short to put up with most fast food joints, and I do love a good burger. I had a go-to place in Portland (actually two), but have yet to find a consistently good place near where I live now.