In-N-Out
Webpages concerning "In-N-Out"
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Wikipedia-Article "In-N-Out"
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | Baldwin Park, California (1948) |
| Location | Irvine, California |
| Key people | Esther Snyder, President Roger Kotch, CFO |
| Industry | Fast food restaurants |
| Slogan | Quality You Can Taste |
| Products | Hamburgers Other food products including french fries and milkshakes |
| Revenue | N/A |
| Operating income | {{{operating_income}}} |
| Net income | {{{net_income}}} |
| Employees | N/A |
| Website | www.in-n-out.com |
| {{{footnotes}}} | |
In-N-Out is a privately owned & operated hamburger fast food restaurant chain. Their corporate headquarters is located in Irvine, California. As of 2005, the only states that have In-N-Out restaurants in them are California, Arizona, and Nevada. Established in 1948, In-N-Out has developed a die-hard customer base that appreciates their simple, yet high-quality menu of hamburgers and french fries made to order with fresh ingredients. It is one of the very few fast-food chains in the United States to pay its employees significantly more than federal and state mandated minimum wages.
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History
In-N-Out's first location was opened on October 22, 1948 by Harry and Esther Snyder at the northwest corner of what is now the intersection of the San Bernardino Freeway, Interstate 10 (I-10) and Francisquito Avenue in the Los Angeles suburb of Baldwin Park, California.
In 1984, at the southwest corner of the same intersection, the company established "In-N-Out University", for the purpose of training its management-level employees in a 'real world' setting. As the university was a full-service restaurant, its operations were similar to that of any other In-N-Out restaurant and to the casual observer it was like any of the others except for its larger size (floor area). In 2004 the university was torn down and in its place a new restaurant with a 75-seat indoor dining area was constructed. After its completion, the original location was closed; the original kitchen is planned to be preserved as part of an upcoming In-N-Out Museum.
Until the 1990s the company had locations only in Southern California. In 1992, In-N-Out opened its first non-Southern California restaurants in Las Vegas (one at Sahara Avenue west of Interstate 15, and the other at Charleston Boulevard and Nellis Boulevard). They also began with expansion into to Northern California and opened additional Las Vegas-area restaurants and by 2000, had opened locations in Arizona The company is currently debating if it should expand into southwestern Utah.
On December 15, 1993, In-N-Out's president, Rich Snyder, son of the founders, and four other passengers died in a plane crash at John Wayne International Airport in Santa Ana, California. Snyder was aboard a charter plane (Israel Aircraft Industries 1124A with tail number N309CK). The charter aircraft followed in a Boeing 757 for landing, became caught in its wake turbulence, rolled into a deep descent and crashed. The crash investigation led to the FAA requiring an adequate period of time for small aircraft that are following heavy aircraft in order to allow the wake turbulance to disipate.
Due to relatively few locations (compared to other fast food chains), a business model where the food is made to order, and the higher quality of food, the drive-thru and in-store lines can be long: On rare occasions one can wait up to 15 minutes to receive an order. Locations are open from 10:30 AM until 1 AM, Sunday thru Thursday, and 1:30AM Friday and Saturday. (A handful of locations have earlier closing times.)
All locations are company-owned. The privately owned corporation does not currently plan to franchise or to take the company public.
In-N-Out has several trademarked/service marks registered with the US Patent and Trade Office including:
- Quality You Can Taste
- Freshness You Can Taste
- Fresh! Every Stop of the Way
- Double-Double
- INO
- Burger Television
- Five by Five
Menu Items
One reason In-N-Out has not expanded far outside Southern California is because none of their food is ever frozen. Restaurants receive weekly shipments from several warehouses. The delivery trucks are only able to travel a limited distance from In-N-Out's meat-packing plants, where the company does its own boning, grinding, and pattying of fresh beef chuck. This commitment to "freshness" has limited the restaurant's expansion to only Northern California, Nevada, and Arizona.
In-N-Out focuses on providing a basic menu that has remained unchanged since the restaurant was established in 1948. The simple menu consists of the following:
- Hamburger
- Cheeseburger
- "Double-Double" - a double cheeseburger (two slices of cheese and two meat patties), this is In-N-Out's most popular menu item
- french fries (one size only)
- Milk shakes - chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla
- Drinks - Coke™, Diet Coke™, 7UP™, Barq's® Root Beer, lemonade, tea, milk, and coffee. In-N-Out is one of the few fast-food chains in the United States to offer 7UP™ alongside Coke. Most outlets that carry Coke™ sell Sprite™, a Coca-Cola Company product.
Ordering an In-N-Out Burger
Despite the apparent simplicity of the menu, burgers can be customized in a variety of ways.
All burgers consist of one or more 1/8 lb. beef patties cooked to "medium" on a lightly toasted sponge-dough bun. Cheeseburgers and Double-Doubles also feature one or two slices of American cheese, respectively. The default style of burger includes a spread similar to Thousand Island dressing; one slice of tomato; and a portion of lettuce. In addition, customers will always be asked if they want to add onions. Although not included on the stock burger, In-N-Out can add pickles to the burger, or mustard and ketchup instead of the spread.
All ingredients, as well as the toasting of the bun, may be specified as light or extra.
The "Secret" menu
There are also "secret" item specials, variations of the basic menu that are not listed on the menus in the stores, nor advertised. These variations are detailed on the company's web site for all to see, but are usually spread through word-of-mouth by In-N-Out aficionados. Some items on the "secret" menu have a slightly different price due to the addition or removal of ingredients.[1]
- 2x4
- Two meat patties and four slices of cheese.
- Note: You can get any combination you want, even as enormous as 20x20.
- 3 by Meat
- Three meat patties without cheese.
- Animal Style
- The meat is fried in mustard served on a bun with pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, extra spread and grilled onions.
- Animal Style Fries
- Fries with cheese, spread, grilled onions and optional pickles.
- Double Meat
- Double Double without cheese.
- Flying Dutchman
- Two meat patties, two slices of melted cheese and that's it. No bun, no lettuce, nothing.
- Fries "Light"
- Almost raw fries.
- Fries "Well-Done"
- Extra crispy fries.
- Grilled Cheese
- No meat, just two slices of melted cheese, tomato, lettuce and spread on a bun.
- Neapolitan Shake
- All three shake flavors (strawberry, vanilla and chocolate) combined in one shake.
- Choco-Vanilla Swirl Shake
- A chocolate and vanilla shake in which the two flavors are swirled into one another.
- Protein Style
- Instead of a bun, the burger is wrapped in lettuce (Atkins approved). And yes, you can get a Grilled Cheese Protein Style!
- Veggie Burger
- A burger without the meat and cheese.
Burgers
The bulk of the secret menu revolves around the burgers. Animal Style is the most popular "secret" style. In addition to the standard toppings, Animal Style burgers include pickles, extra spread, grilled onions, and mustard fried onto each meat patty. 3×3, 4×4, or variations of m × c, refers to a burger with a varied amount of meat patties (first number, m) and slices of cheese (second number, c). For example, a burger with six meat patties and three slices of cheese would be a 6×3.
It is possible to order a burger with no meat (a Grilled Cheese) or no cheese (such as a Double Meat or 3-by-Meat). Unlike some restaurants which use a vegetable patty, at In-N-Out, a Veggie Burger is a sandwich containing only vegetables, and no meat or cheese.
In-N-Out has two ways of providing a burger with no bun, which are popular among Atkins dieters and no/low carbohydrate eaters. Protein Style, or a Protein Burger, replaces the hamburger bun with large leaves of lettuce, creating a lettuce wrap burger. The Flying Dutchman is simply two meat patties and two slices of cheese; it includes no bun, vegetables, or spread. For eat-in orders, the bottom patty is placed on top of a burger wrapper, alternating meat, cheese, meat, cheese. For to-go orders, the Dutchman is arranged meat, cheese, cheese, meat, and placed inside of the wrapper.
Chopped Chilies adds mild (pickled) chopped peppers to the bottom layer of the burger. In addition, sides of chiles are available upon request.
Onion styles
Onions may be present on the burger in many different forms. Regular Onions is what a customer receives by default. This refers to one full slice of onions that are not cooked, but rather placed on top of the topmost patty or cheese slice while the meat is still on the grill, giving the onion time to warm and soften its flavor. Raw Onions are not warmed at all, and instead placed between the spread on the bottom bun and the lettuce, keeping them cold. These can also be ordered as Chopped Raw Onions. Grilled Onions indicates chopped, grilled onions placed in the same location as 'regular onions'. Whole Grilled Onions consists of a whole slice of onion placed on the grill and cooked until it is soft.
French fries
Depending on the season, In-N-Out uses Kennebec or Russet potatoes and slices every individual potato by hand shortly before it enters the fryer. Standard fries are cooked four to six minutes (or until "golden brown") in cottonseed oil. A salt and pepper mixture is added after the fries are cooked, although ordering a No-Salt Fry will omit this. Fries Well-Done are cooked for a longer period, making them crispier. Fries Light are fries that have been cooked for a shorter period, making them softer. Fries Lightly Well are cooked longer than standard fries, so they are more crispy but not as long as fries well-done, which often leaves them rock hard and full of oil. Although not typical, a customer can order a fry cooked for a time they specify, such as 30 seconds (e.g. a 30-second fry). Animal [Style] Fries are topped with two slices of cheese, spread, and grilled onions, and are served with a fork. Cheese Fries adds melted cheese.
Drinks
Rather than ordering a single flavor shake, a Neapolitan Shake is a mixture of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry shake. A Choco-Vanilla Swirl Shake or any other combination of two flavors can be made. Root beer floats are part vanilla shake and part root beer, although any combination of shake and drink can be ordered. Large and Extra Large shakes are also available. The cup sizes for these shakes are one below those of soft drinks, i.e., a Large Shake is a Medium Soft Drink cup, while an Extra Large Shake is a Large Soft Drink. There is no small size shake, just the standard 14oz. shake cup.
Fountain drinks can also be ordered mixed together. For example, Lemon-Up is a mixture of lemonade and 7 Up, and Tea-ade, a.k.a. an Arnold Palmer, is a mixture of iced tea and lemonade. Another popular mixture possibility is Dr. Pepper mixed with Root Beer to create: "Dr. Rootbeer" a.k.a. "Pepperbeer".
Store layout
Many In-N-Out stores are based on one of a set of templates or "cookie-cutter" blueprints (chosen based on available space and expected traffic levels) that have changed over the years. Other stores are designed to be unique to fit into the surrounding architecture, or to stand out. Notable "unique" In-N-Out locations include the store on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco and the restaurant in Westwood in Los Angeles. The typical location's interior layout includes the following:
- customer service counter with several computers and registers
- indoor dining room (benches and fixed chairs)
- kitchen (called the stand)
- food preparation area (where the tomatoes, onions,
- storage areas for the paper goods (napkins, bags, etc.)
- storage areas for the 'dry' food goods (potatoes, buns, etc.)
- walk-in refrigerator (no freezers) for the perishable goods (meat patties, lettuce, etc.)
- mechanical/electrical rooms
- restrooms
- employee locker rooms.
The exterior layout includes the following:
- one or two drive-through lanes with corresponding service windows
- outdoor dining area (tables and benches, and overhead canopies)
Variations of this layout exist depending on the age of the restaurant, physical lot size constraints, and the restaurant's relationship to neighboring structures or its proximity to the street. For example, many older restaurant designs are solely a drive-through/walk-up layout with a 'two-box' design (i.e. the kitchen was separated from the remainder of the restaurant by one of the drive-through lanes). This layout is typically comprised of two vehicle lanes (i.e., drive-thrus), a single window that customers can 'walk-up' to and order, and outdoor seating (only). As noted above, one drive-through lane is on the side of the kitchen closest to the street (referred to as the 'front' lane) and the other lane is on the other side (referred to as the 'rear' lane). Indoor dining at these restaurants is not available. Because of its size, the kitchen is limited to a single customer service register, one cooktop grill, a countertop, two sets of fryers (for the french fries) with two fry baskets each, one set of soda and shake dispensers, a sink, and a 'spinner' that is used to centrifugally remove excess water from the freshly diced potatoes.
As a result of a larger restaurant site, newer restaurants now include an indoor dining area in addition to the outdoor dining area. Conversely, because of the greater ability to serve 'dine-in' customers, these stores will have only one drive-through lane. Because the kitchen is larger, there are generally multiple registers, two or three grills, larger countertops, multiple fryers, etc. Depending on the location, and particularly if it is in a heavily developed or densely built area, a few locations with indoor dining areas will not have drive-thrus.
The In-N-Out located in Barstow, California, is fitted with five grills and ten friers, an amusement-park style line, and cavernous dining room. The majority of this stores business is a result of those traveling to and from Southern California and Las Vegas on Interstate 15, putting Barstow in the middle of a long drive.
The signature colors for In-N-Out are white, red, and yellow. The white is used for the buildings' exterior walls and the employees' (associates') basic uniform, red is used for the buildings' roofs and associates' aprons/hats, and yellow is used for the decorative band on the roof. Naturally, variations in the application of the colors on the building will occur depending on the architecture of each restaurant.
Corporate culture
In-N-Out is one of the very few fast-food chains in the United States to pay its employees significantly more than the Federally mandated minimum wage of $5.15/hour and California's minimum wage of $6.75/hour — currently starting pay is a minimum of $9.00/hour. For its full-time employees, the company offers complete benefits, almost unheard of in the rest of the industry. And Available to all associates 'fringe' benefits include an annual company picnic, gifts at Christmas, and the opportunity to participate in a variety of other company-sponsored activities, and paid holidays, and paid vacations. On average, each of its 200+ store managers earn just under $100,000 annually, and have been with the company for 13 years. All of the restaurants are closed on Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. Furthermore, In-N-Out is highly selective in the hiring process of its employees. As a result of these factors, In-N-Out enjoys lower employee turnover, better-trained employees and higher efficiency. It is one of the few chains to receive a positive mention in the book Fast Food Nation.
The company operates on the principle that its customers, like its employees, are important as exemplified by the following In-N-Out "golden rules":
- Rule #1 - The customer is always right; and
- Rule #2 - If the customer makes a mistake, refer back to Rule #1.
In-N-Out is active in the communities it serves. Every year the company provides free burgers to participants marching in the Rose Parade, provides cans for donations, matches customer donations 3-to-1 in April for National Child Abuse Prevention month, and underwrites various fundraisers to support local charities and non-profit organizations.
Advertising
In-N-Out generally relies on positive 'word-of-mouth' for its advertising. Television advertisements are sporadic; for the most part, when the ads appear, the hamburger, or product, is the focus of the commercial - In-N-Out rarely, if ever, relies on spokespersons or actors for its commercials. Radio advertisements are equally rare and are generally limited to the characteristic jingle: "In-N-Out, In-N-Out. That's what a hamburger's all about." However, in the past, the Snyders have sponsored Christmas music programming and given voiceovers expressing the meaning of the holiday. In addition to the jingle, there are several In-N-Out slogans including: "Quality You Can Taste" and "Cleanliness You Can See".
The company also makes popular bumper stickers that are ubiquitous in Southern California. However, instead of reading "IN-N-OUT BURGER", many have been modified to read "IN-N-OUT URGE" by cutting off the end letters of the "B" and "R", which is even more appealing to young people than a burger. New stickers given out by In-N-Out stores now simply read "IN-N-OUT" to preclude such modification.
Trivia
- In-N-Out also offers a cookout trailer that can be hired for private or corporate events. This trailer offers hamburgers, cheeseburgers, double-doubles, grilled cheese, 20 oz. fountain drinks, and potato chips, instead of fries, to hungry patrons.
- Prior to converting to computerized cash registers, the orders were taken on color-coded notepads (green for the front drive-through window, pink for the rear drive-through window, and white for the walk-up window)
- The founder, Harry Snyder's favorite movie was Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World in which individuals look for a hidden treasure and find it under the crossed palm trees — "under the W", where the middle two of four palms formed an 'X', which is why many stores have crossing palm trees in front, and some have two.
- During periods when the drive-through line is really long, an employee is sent to personally take orders from the cars waiting to be served. Today, these employees enter the orders on a PDA-like device, called the Handheld.
- In-N-Out stickers are available on request as well as paper hats.
- After accepting only cash in its many years in business, In-N-Out began accepting Visa and MasterCard for payment on November 9, 2005. In-N-Out may in time accept American Express, but not yet.
Cult following
The burger chain has developed a cult following, primarily because of its reputation for adhering to the notions that fast food should be made from scratch and that the whims of the customer should be entertained. [2] A favorite among celebrities, Vanity Fair has even served In-N-Out burgers at its post-Oscars parties. [3] Angelina Jolie, for example, confessed that she left the 2003 Academy Awards ceremony early, dressed in her glamorous outfit, and stopped off at an In-N-Out on the way home.[4] The restaurant was a plot point in the film, The Big Lebowski.
The chain has also become an anti-corporate alternative to fast food restaurants such as McDonald's (which was founded a few years before In-N-Out in nearby San Bernardino). When the location at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf opened, local business leaders said that 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. [5]
Even the opening of a new In-N-Out location 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. [6]
Bible quotes
In-N-Out prints discreet references to Bible verses on their paper utensils. The print is small and out of the way, and only contains the book, chapter and verse numbers (i.e., "Proverbs 3:5"), not the actual text of the passages. The Snyders are a religious Christian family, and most likely these particular Bible verses have special meaning for them.
- Burger and cheeseburger wrappers
- Revelation 3:20—"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
- Beverage cups and antenna toppers
- Milkshake cups
- Proverbs 3:5—"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding."
- Double-Double wrapper
- Nahum 1:7—"The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; He knows those who take refuge in Him."
- Water cups (Not the clear plastic cups)
- John 14:6 —"Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'"
Other In-N-Out Burgers
There is a drive-thru restaurant in Gainesville, Florida named "In-N-Out Burger" that is not affilated with the In-N-Out Burger chain.
References
- Schlosser, Eric (2001) Fast Food Nation Perennial.
- Snopes.com article on Biblical quotes on In-N-Out cups and wrappings
- The Secret Behind A Burger Cult by Tom McNichol, New York Times
- Paradise in a Bun, Hold the Meat by Melissa Clark, New York Times
- The Red Carpet Leads To a Drive-Through by Patrick McGeehan, New York Times
- In-N-Out Burger is giving McDonald's a run for its money by Carleen Hawn
- In-N-Out Burger Beefs Up the Wharf by Jenny Strasburg, San Francisco Chronicle
- San Francisco job applicants come by the dozen to interview for jobs at a new In-N-Out restaurant; $9.25 per hour plus meal by Steve Rubenstein, San Francisco Chronicle
- In-N-Out Burger carved a niche in the competitive fast-food market by sticking with the basics by Frank Green, qsrweb.com.