In-N-Out Burger — Restaurant in Pasadena

On my recent os trip to the states I was privileged to literally stumble across this gem of an experience created by the amazing people who were working that day. It led me to calling In and Out to personally acknowledge the staff and thank them for a meaningful and memorable moment on my journey. Although I had already called I feel that adding to it online is also the least I could do. It was over 100°F that day, hot by any standards wherever you come from in the world. I was able to find a lone park in the very small parking area as this beauty was a real American drive thru with cars going 80m down the road queuing up to get a famous In and out burger. It was hot in the shade and yet it didn't take long for "John" the front service staff for walk-in customers to cheerfully and enthusiastically take my order, even suggesting and explaining options on the menu as I worked out what to order. Friends of mine who had been in L.A told me it was a must to visit In and Out. Now I will be saying it to anyone I know travelling in the area and especially this restaurant which I believe but don't quote me is the no.5 and is the oldest, unrenovated In and Out standing? Sorry if I got it wrong John :) I was so amazed as I got my burger and started to enjoy my double double with pink lemonade for the first time sitting under the illusion of shade out the back of the establishment that the female who was addressing each customer over the loud speaker was also unwavering in her enthusiasm and joy to serve each car that was next in line, the heat on my skin was nothing compared to the warmth in my heart and the mind explosion of how these individuals were offering such service at exceptional levels and yet going beyond that and working together in unison without a sliver of complaint or even acknowledging the heat that I can only imagine in the tight area in which they were operating with the grills and bodies packed in there would have been intolerable to most people if not any person. I had to go back to the counter and take a photo with John and my apologies I cannot remember the crew leaders name at the time, I will put it down to the heat but I will never forget this experience or the story they created for me not only as a genuine cultural American moment in my mind from what I grew up watching on TV in Australia as a child or at least a small window of what I imagined but more so the resilience, comradery and best of people no matter where you are from, standing beside one another in the literal heat of the moment to be of service to others and doing it with care, enthusiasm and style. You guys absolutely Rock!! Thank you again for such an amazing experience and by the way the double double was...

This review is for the In N Out in Pasadena on Foothill.

I've been to this place a lot of times. I don't use the drive thru, because the line is too long. I don't park in the lot, because people block you in, so I park on the street nearby. I'm okay doing this.

The food is typical In N Out. I get a three by three mustard fried - makes the burger taste soooo good! Prices have gone up, but it's still reasonable for fast food.

The bad - the walk up window is pathetic. At times it's a little better, but there's a strange philosophy the staff at this In N Out have. They slow down the order process and there's almost always a long line of people waiting to order. How do they slow down the order line? The person taking the orders gives priority to the people picking up their order. It can get really bad. I've seen the order gal (most times it's a girl) standing and waiting for the food to be made. She could be taking someone's order, but she just stands there waiting. I've seen her tell the person in line to wait as she waits for the food to be made. I think this is very dangerous, since the line gets long and cars are trying to get out of the drive thru line (after they get their food). I've seen fights nearly break out, because a driver almost hit someone waiting in line or a driver is upset, because the person in line won't move out of the way. I've seen a woman panic as she was pulling into the lot - she backed up quickly and got her car stuck on the high curb.

I've been to many, many In N Out stores and I don't recall them using this practice of slowing down the order process. In fact, it's the opposite, where they try to get the orders in quickly, which keeps the order line flowing.

If this is the way In N Out management wants their store run, there's nothing that can be done. On the other hand, if it goes against corporate policy, then someone needs to secret shop them, then they can re-calibrate the faulty system here.

What does it do to me. I do my best to avoid this location. It's closer to my home and office, but sometimes I'm not in the mood for the slow moving order line, so I take a slightly longer drive to the Arcadia store. Now that one does a great job keeping the line moving!

Avoid this In N Out, unless you enjoy waiting in a...

QUICK HISTORY: This was the 5th In-N-Out opened (which I'll argue is the downfall of this location later).

After moving away from Pasadena for a couple years, I figured I'd come back to my childhood In-N-Out for a burger. Unfortunately, this was probably the most disappointing experience I've ever had at one of their locations.

Anyone who comes here knows that this is a busy location. There are only 4 parking spaces, the drive thru traffic spills out onto Foothill Blvd and causes all sorts of hazards for people driving, and the wait times can grow at what seem like exponential rates. Just go on google maps and do a street view of the location if you've never been. All of these issues, in my opinion, are because this location is ancient. My bet is it was probably built in the 1950s, and it just wasn't designed to handle the popularity of today's In-N-Out brand like the newer locations are designed for.

This causes quality issues. How are the employees here supposed to handle the volume of people they get in a kitchen that's smaller than a one car garage? They are forced to cut corners. Rather than smile and greet you, they have to jump straight to your order and rush through when it's busy. Food comes out sloppy because there's so many orders that have to be made in inadequate kitchen space. Wait times feel disproportionately long during peak hours when compared to other, newer In-N-Out locations.

Let me be clear, I don't blame a single one of the employees who works here for any shortcomings. This rests 100% with corporate in my opinion. Why not open up in a new location with more space? Or open a second location in Pasadena? Or make an offer to buy out the restaurant next door with the massive corner lot and ample parking? I'm sure they've looked into this type of stuff before, but it's obviously still their lowest priority, otherwise we would have seen change within the past two decades.

While I left full, I did not leave satisfied. Perhaps next time I'll just make do with an option that's slightly less frustrating than the experience I...