A side benefit of visiting Las Vegas was getting myself back to an In-N-Out. It’s been a while! As one of the most hyped burger brands in the country I’ve been anxiously waiting for an opportunity to get their fries on my site but the closest location to my house is over 400 miles away. Fortunately for me there was an In-N-Out about 100 yards from my hotel.
I gleaned a lot from their Wikipedia page regarding the history of the burger chain. In-N-Out is family owned with roots going back to 1940’s southern California. They were the first restaurant to have a two-way speaker drive-thru and they’ve expanded slowly and carefully while keeping control over distribution centers and product control. The menu is incredibly simple, but their “secret” menu offers a bit more customization for customers in the know. I am definitely in the know.
My order is always a double double animal style with chiles. Except when I forget the chiles. Which is always. Animal Style is the not-so-secret menu item that gets you a mustard cooked patty (for the burgers), pickles, grilled onions, and extra spread (somewhere between thousand island and tartar sauce). Fries can come animal style as well. To the best of my analysis this means you get American cheese, grilled onions, and spread on top of your traditional bed of fries.
First of all, this was the coolest In-N-Out location I’ve ever been to. Located on the LINQ Promenade in the shadow of the High Roller it’s only accessible by foot, and it gets A LOT of traffic. There’s a bit more neon than usual, a bit more seating, but everything else is very familiar.
My burger was incredibly good. My fries were fine, but they could be better. Measuring in at about 7mm these Kennebec fries were dry and fairly bland, but they held a reasonable crust. This makes me think that they’re blanched in plain water instead of a salt water solution and/or dried too much before frying. They’re not bad, but there’s not a lot of potato flavor. Once they’re covered in American cheese, grilled onions, and burger spread you might forgive that. My advice? Get a fork. They’re a mess. Also, add some chiles. I love spicy stuff, but (per usual) I forgot to ask for them on my meal.
This was my favorite cheap meal while I was in Vegas. I think the burger and fries were less than $10 altogether and it was more than enough food. The fries weren’t perfect, but they’re good enough for a 7 out of 10 on my rating scale. The grilled onions and burger spread add a lot of sweetness and tang to the french fries, and American cheese holds a melty corner of my heart.
Catalog: Sampled on 11/30/2017
Side note – I ate this on my way out to Red Rock Canyon. If you find yourself in Vegas and aren’t really into the bright lights and money pit machines then this is a great outlet. It’s hard to believe that this slice of natural beauty is located so close to the strip, but it’s only about 30 minutes outside of the strip.
The Sodafry 