On a trip to Austin, I ordered every burger at In-N-Out, a Californian fast-food chain famous for its well-priced burgers.
Harry and Esther Snyder opened their first In-N-Out burger stand in 1948. In 1963, In-N-Out began serving its famous Double-Double burger and added “animal-style” burgers to its menu two years later. The chain, which now operates in eight states, opened its 400th restaurant in 2023 and is a favorite of celebrities and world-class chefs alike.
In-N-Out is helmed by Lynsi Snyder, the only granddaughter of Harry and Esther Snyder. At 42, she is one of the youngest billionaires in the US, with an estimated net worth of $6.7 billion. The company has evolved under her leadership, but the menu at In-N-Out has remained largely unchanged over the decades.
Here’s every burger at In-N-Out, ranked from worst to best.
My least favorite burger at In-N-Out was, perhaps unsurprisingly, the plain hamburger.
It came on a warm toasty bun and cost $3.15.
I knew it would probably be underwhelming compared to the menu’s other burgers, which come with more exciting toppings.
I turned out to be correct.
The beef patty was crispy and had a nice flavor to it.
However, it definitely needed some kind of topping. This order is really only for children or people with picky palettes.
The cheeseburger was slightly better.
It cost just $3.50, though I didn’t think it was necessarily worth it considering you can get a much larger, more flavorful burger for a slightly higher price.
It comes with one beef patty and a slice of American cheese.
The bun was toasted and the melted cheese covered the entirety of the crispy beef.
However, despite being slightly better than the hamburger, I probably wouldn’t order this again.
If I did, I would definitely ask for extra toppings like ketchup, mustard, onions, or pickles.
The 4×4 is the largest burger at In-N-Out and is part of the chain’s “not-so-secret” menu.
Also called the “Quad Quad,” the mammoth burger comes with four beef patties, four cheese slices, lettuce, tomato, spread, and the option to add onions. It costs $9.49, making it the most expensive burger I tried.
The ginormous burger was difficult to hold in one hand, let alone bite into.
Looking at it, it was just so much meat. You would have to have a really big appetite to get through the entire thing, I would imagine.
All of the elements of the burger were delicious, from the juicy beef patties to the layers of cheese and fresh lettuce and tomato.
However, it was much too large for me. I definitely couldn’t, and wouldn’t, eat this if not for this taste test. It was over-the-top filling, and the vegetables did little to balance out how much meat and cheese were in the burger. The buns also began to fall apart while I was eating it.
I also tried a Double-Double protein-style.
As part of the chain’s “not-so-secret” menu, you can order any burger wrapped in lettuce rather than buns. The burger cost $4.50.
I was surprised that swapping out the buns for lettuce didn’t affect the price at all. I would have thought it would be cheaper to get lettuce buns, but I guess that’s not necessarily the case.
It came with two burger patties, cheese, tomato, lettuce, and spread.
I’m not usually a fan of lettuce-wrapped burgers, but I wanted to give this celebrity-favorite order a shot. Kylie Jenner reportedly orders her burger this way when she stops by In-N-Out.
I felt there was way too much lettuce on this lower-carb burger.
I thought the lettuce made the burger so watery that I couldn’t really enjoy the other ingredients. It was definitely lighter than the other burgers I tried, but when I’m going to a fast-food joint, that’s not usually my goal.
It wasn’t a “lettuce bun” — it was just lettuce.
The Double Meat burger, also on the chain’s secret menu, is basically a Double-Double without the cheese.
It cost $4.90 at the In-N-Out I went to.
It comes with two beef patties, lettuce, tomato, spread, and optional onions.
There was a generous serving of each of the ingredients, from the lettuce and tomato to the thick layer of spread on the bottom of the burger.
The absence of cheese allowed the other ingredients to really come through.
It tasted a little lighter and was definitely more manageable to eat than some of the other large burgers. The lettuce and tomato tasted really fresh, while the spread added enough flavor to make up for the lack of cheese.
This burger really impressed me, even though I do personally prefer cheese on my burgers.
My third-favorite burger on In-N-Out’s menu was the 3×3.
It comes with lettuce, tomato, spread, and the option to add onions, plus three burger patties and three slices of cheese. It cost $7.30, which I thought was a pretty fair price for the huge burger I received.
This burger was much easier to eat than the 4×4.
Each beef patty was coated in tangy, gooey cheese. It had a perfect amount of crisp lettuce and tomato to balance out the meat and cheese.
The burger was easier to hold and eat than the larger version.
The buns held up better. Overall, despite the generous portion of meat and cheese, it tasted balanced.
I also ordered a plain Double-Double, which is In-N-Out’s version of a double cheeseburger.
Most Double-Double burgers come with lettuce, tomato, onions, and spread. Since I would also be trying another Double-Double with those ingredients, I ordered it without lettuce and tomato. I ordered it with just onions, pickles, and spread. The burger cost $4.90.
The patties were incredibly juicy but had a nice char on the outside.
The cheese slices were perfectly melted and coated each part of the burger, something I couldn’t say about any other burger I tried.
The bun was perfectly soft and held everything together perfectly, while the special spread had my mouth watering for another bite.
The burger was beyond flavorful, the perfect size, and shockingly inexpensive.
It was by far the best double cheeseburger I’ve ever had from a fast-food restaurant.
By far, the best burger I tried at In-N-Out was the Double-Double “animal-style.”
The Double-Double usually comes with two beef patties, two slices of American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions, and spread, but animal-style is slightly different.
However, it doesn’t affect the price. My burger cost $4.90, which I thought was a good deal for the huge, flavorful burger I received.
If you order your burger animal-style, the beef patties will be cooked in mustard and come with all the aforementioned toppings, plus pickles and extra spread, and the onions will be grilled.
The burger was not only picture-perfect, but it was probably the best fast-food burger I’ve ever eaten.
The pickles were tart and crunchy, the beef patties were over-the-top juicy and flavorful, and the cheese-to-meat ratio was perfect.
The onions came through and added a lot of flavor. The spread was savory and unlike any other sauce I’ve had on a fast-food burger before.
The burger itself was also very large, and all the ingredients tasted fresh. The cheese was also flavorful and thick. For less than $5, this was my favorite burger, by far.
After eating my way through the entire In-N-Out burger menu, I could really understand why the fast-food chain has such a cult following.
None of the burgers I tried were bad — some just had more exciting elements than others.
The next time I’m at In-N-Out, I’ll definitely order a Double-Double animal style, but I wouldn’t hesitate to order a double cheeseburger, 3×3, or even the Double Meat again.
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