One of the most famous fast-food burger restaurants in America is getting progressively closer to home, as this week California-based In-N-Out confirmed plans to open its first location in Washington State.
"We’re excited to share that we’re working on a plan to come to Southern Washington by 2025!" shared the popular SoCal burger, fries, and shakes spot on social media Tuesday, April 9.
"It’s an exciting day for our Company, the In-N-Out Family and our Customers. Stay tuned for more details. We’re looking forward to serving quality burgers, fries, and shakes in Southern Washington!" the business continued.
First Washington In-N-Out will be in Ridgefield
The planned location is in Ridgefield, as part of the city's Union Ridge Town Center development, located west of Interstate 5 at Pioneer St.
The location would mark the first foray into Washington for In-N-Out Burger. Currently, the burger chain's northernmost location is in Salem, Oregon.
The Ridgefield location will be about 475 kilometres from downtown Vancouver (Canada), or about a five-hour drive (traffic and border wait time-dependent).
This year, In-N-Out is celebrating its 75th anniversary. Known for its simple - but adaptable - menu of burgers, fries, and drinks, as well as its drive-through service, old fashioned stylings, and religious roots (check the bottom of the cups, cartons, and sleeves for Biblical chapter/verse references).
SoCal burger chain known for its 'secret menu'
The burger chain is also known for its not-so-secret menu that allows customers to customize their order, such as "Protein Style" (a burger with no buns wrapped in iceberg lettuce leaves), "Animal Fries" (fries with cheese, "spread," and grilled onions), and the current viral trending "Flying Dutchman" (burger patties sandwiched between cheese slices; social media users are also getting this with whole grilled onion on the outside then eating it with spread and peppers).
You can also order a grilled cheese, root beer floats, or pile up as many patties and cheese slices as possible (to do this, if you want five patties and five cheese slices, ask for a "five by five," for example).
The chain's most iconic menu item is the "Double Double" burger, which is two beef patties and two cheese slices. Canadians, of course, use the same name for a Timmies coffee with two sugars and two creams.
While In-N-Out does cross the border annually to set up a trailer to sell burgers and chips (not fries) at the Langley Cruise-In fundraiser event, the chain has expanded slowly over its 75 years. One primary reason is that In-N-Out does not freeze their burger patties, so they have to secure distribution to any new location to maintain the product's integrity.
Vancouver In-N-Out fans travel or try dupes
Vancouverites often wait until their flights land in Los Angeles or Las Vegas to hit up In-N-Out, though over the years some local businesses have tried overtly or discretely to match the famous fast-food chain's taste and style.
In 2017, a chain proclaiming to be an In-N-Out dupe, CaliBurger, shut down its Vancouver location. More recently, Victoria-based Burger Crush, with an outpost in Downtown Vancouver, has drawn comparisons to In-N-Out.
Ridgefield's Union Ridge Town Center is a large shopping development that will have not only the first Washington In-N-Out but also a Costco, Panda Express, and McDonald's, among other tenants.
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