Though I've never experienced In-N-Out Burger firsthand, its story, akin to Chick-fil-A's, unfolds as a privately held success, deepening my curiosity.

What captivates me is founder Harry Snyder's enduring influence on the company's culture, extending beyond burgers and fries—how it still remains today! In-N-Out becomes a living testament to how a founder's principles can shape culinary experiences.

Penned by Lynsi Snyder, the current president, and Harry’s only grandchild, the narrative unveils a painful family history, addressing child abuse, drug addiction, failed relationships, cancer, and death. In-N-Out Burger's admirable transparency, showcased through this narrative, is guided by Lynsi's faith, reflecting her fascinating journey. The book's sprinkle of fun facts about In-N-Out Burger adds to its overall enjoyable appeal.

Overall, I found this book quite enjoyable!!

As a person that never tried Ins-N-Out Burger my entire life (But I'm dying to) this book is such interesting knowledge for me. The author used an easy wording so its easier for me to understand the context and I feel like its that type of books that can help you in understanding about business more without actually stressing about the context because its so easy to digest.

This book is especially fun for So Cal people! I know that InNOut has branched out across the US, but for years, it has been our special treasure.

The granddaughter of one of the chain’s founder authors this book and gives a wonderful behind the scenes story about how this amazing company came to be.

My husband worked for InNOut for 7 years through high school and college so we have a special fondness for the brand.

Great read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Nelson Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the author Lynsi Snyder, publishers Thomas Nelson, and TLC Book Tours, for an advance hardback copy of THE INS-N-OUTS OF THE IN-N-OUT BURGER. Thank you also to NetGalley for an accomanying widget. All views are mine.

Being a veteran of the restaurant industry, having experienced the family one can find between the quiet tables of a pre-opened dining room, reading this book written by a restaurant heiress with a deep love of the burgers that uplifted her family and so many others felt like coming home for me.

Three (or more) things I loved:

1. It was really interesting to read about how, in In-N-Out's early years, the hamburger shop fit in with popular culture: Elvis and rock n' roll, poodle skirts and shared milkshakes... the author's grandparents satisfied a craving this whole country had no idea it had.

2. The author's father was abused in childhood, which is relevant to this family's story in more than one way. But I thought it was really brave that Lynsi tried to take on the deep metaphysical question of why children must suffer abuse. Being a devout Christian, her explanation predictably follows scripture. But these experiences of her father’s, and her beliefs about them, lead them as representatives of In-N-Out to support organizations that aid children who have experienced abuse and trauma. Such a surprising narrative.

3. I feel a great deal of respect for people who stick in and survive the addiction problems of people they love. The author stood by her father, and then her first husband, strived to see them past the demons. On the other side of all that, she found her faith.

Three (or less) things I didn't love:

This section isn't only for criticisms. It's merely for items that I felt something for other than "love" or some interpretation thereof.

1. You don't hear often about companies that remain privately held. In-N-Out not only never traded publicly, it didn't even offer franchise options. Now home to 38,000 employees, In-N-Out has clearly been successful with a model that has been the downfall for so many other small businesses.

2. This company treats its employees very well. I don't know, I guess that's rare enough it deserves attention!

3. It's very cool that they do so much with racing.

4. Secret menu is pretty cool. Wish there was an In-N-Out in Ohio!

Rating: 🥤🍔🍟🍦 fast food meals
Recommend? Yes
Finished: Sep 27 23
Format: gifted hardback, digital, NetGalley
Read this book if you like:
👻 narrative nonfiction
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 family stories, family drama
👭🏽 teenage girl coming of age
🍴 restaurant business
📉 family business
🍔 In-N-Out Burger

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are entirely my own

I have always heard people talk about In-n-out burger and so I picked up this books on a whim just hoping to find the secret sauce. It is a biography/business memoir from the perspective of the granddaughter of the founders . The author talks about the faith of her grandparents, how it became popular and why their specialty is burgers. It's quite a story and for die hard fans a glimpse of why they love the brand.

I love reading books about how my favorite companies went from conception to what they are today. Before this book, "Becoming Trader Joe" was my go-to recommendation for a food-oriented business book. Great read!

I have been to In-N-Out Burger a few times when traveling and enjoyed it. I knew it was a private, family-owned business, but nothing really of the background. The author is the third generation of the family to run the business. The book begins with her grandparents who started with one store, and their two sons who grew the business to where it is today. The story is not all rosy. There is family strife and the untimely deaths of several family members, but the company survives. The book read more like a memoir than a standard business book. The author sprinkled in her stories of growing up in the family with the timeline of opening restaurants and the company history. There was a lot of repetition as she kept on talking about the fresh ingredients and the company culture. You can tell she is proud, but it got old after a while. All of the faith talk also made this more of a memoir than a business book.

Get ready to drool.

Interesting and informative, this book reads as a comprehensive dump of the company's history, from its humble beginnings to present day. We learn about the founding family, who retain sole ownership of In-N-Out today. Lynsi (author, granddaughter and CEO) is forthright in revealing painful family history, including triggering topics of child abuse, drug addiction, failed relationships, cancer, and death - showing a transparency I find admirable.

If you are fan of In-N-Out, this is required reading. Sprinkled between business best practices and family vignettes, we are shown what makes the food so fresh (spoiler: no preservatives, never frozen, never reheated), the food prep process, simple mottos, sources of inspiration, and secret menu origins.

I was surprised at how central the Christian faith is to In-N-Out's core values and the book by extension. How unobservant I am to have never noticed the scripture written on every single drink served!

The writing style is to the point, utilizing plain language, which reads a little dry and lacking the charisma that I'd expect from Lynsi in person. However, if longevity and growth are any indicators, In-N-Out’s got the winning recipe. I can't wait to go try the neapolitan shake: a secret menu item I never knew existed!

I recommend the physical format, as photos and visual anecdotes were missing from the electronic format. Thank you to NetGalley and Nelson Books for granting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is out now - Happy 75th anniversary!!!

I didn't like this book very much. It was full of either general life advice or pretty basic business advice.

As a born and raised Californian who grew up eating In-N-Out Burger, I knew I had to pick up "The Ins-N-Outs of In-N-Out Burger" written by the president (and granddaughter of the company's founder) Lynsi Snyder! There are many aspects of the In-N-Out culture that I am already familiar with, but I loved learning how the company was founded, built, and expanded to be what it currently is today.

Lynsi's writing also touches on the culture behind In-N-Out and what factors make the company such a phenomenon. In-N-Out's history is not without tragedy and Lynsi writes about these subjects with heart and feeling. She also names a few of the "not so secret secret menu" that I'm looking forward to trying the next time I am near an In-N-Out location.

This book isn't totally perfect. I think it could have really benefited from better editing. Obviously, Lynsi isn't a developed author so some passages felt like a high school essay. Lots of "More about this later" statements that could have been avoided from different structuring of the narrative.

I'd highly recommend picking this up when it publishes on October 17, 2023! Thank you to NetGalley and Nelson Books for an eARC in exchange for my review.

Fun history of a favorite chain! Loved reading about the origins of In N Out Burger. As someone who's lived in California, the chain is a staple and is always a popular spot.

I was really excited to read this! I loved the little fun facts about In-N-Out and how it became to be where it is today. I will say, the author sounded like a third party reciting a story so I felt like it lacked connection or empathy. The kindle version is a MESS when it comes to formatting; sentences cutting off in the middle, footnotes in the middle of a paragraph, different fronts/sizes, etc. Hopefully it’s fixed before it’s published.

A fun read with the ins and outs of In and Out. I enjoyed the behind-the-scenes look, but the authors political leanings were evident and I wasn't interested in that.

This is a drag of a book, I'm not sure how many people are interested in hearing about the opening of every single location of In-n-Out Burger.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

Summary:
Read the story of how the legendary business was started and grew to the level it currently is. Hear how and why certain traditions came to be. Read stories from former employees. Learn the good and bad of the key players of this business.

For most West Coast residents, In & Out is a staple- especially in California. You've just landed at the airport, where do you go to eat? Many choose In & Out. My husband always does. To many, nothing says home like eating a burger from their favorite fast food place- In & Out. So, to read how this little business became the legend it is was a story I couldn't pass up.

I loved learning how In & Out originally started. I loved reading how the founders put quality ahead of everything. They were willing to get up every morning to hit the farmers market for the freshest produce to serve their customers. I loved hearing how many decisions made then were made. Not to mention how they're still in effect today.

And while hearing the founding of this company was enjoyable, hearing the personal struggles along the way brought a dose of reality to the book. Key players became more human when you learned how imperfect they were and the struggles they battled on a daily basis. Each CEO brought their own unique methods that made a successful business even more so, they each also had their own demons to face. Lynsi doesn't shy away from revealing the dark side of addiction, abuse and depression. Each CEO blessed the company, but those blessings came with a cost.

Fans of the beloved burger joint will love reading the successes and achievements. I learned that one of my local In & Outs holds a "first" distinction. They will love the history and pride that was a building block within each restaurant. They will love learning how the arrow and crossed palm trees came to be. They'll love learning how the secret menus items were created. They'll get to read how one little drive thru became a legendary business globally known. One that still holds to the founding traditions today that it opened with on that first day.

Honestly, this book ruined In-n-Out for me. I never knew the were such a religious company. That information turned me off. I will not be going there again based on their beliefs.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Ins-N-Outs of In-N-Out Burger by Lynsi Snyder!

The Ins-N-Outs of In-N-Out Burger will be published on October 17, 2023. Nelson Books provided an early galley for review.

I spent a week for several summers around the turn of the century visiting my friends in San Diego, California, to go to Comic-Con. Inevitably, we would have at least one run to In-N-Out Burger (sometimes more). That is how I had my first taste of their fantastic food. I am a big fan of burgers and a fan of their burgers as well. So, I was eager to read this book to find out the story behind the business.

Lysni's passion and pride in her family's business gives this book a welcoming tone. You don't have to be a fan of the food to appreciate the story of dedicated work ethics and the desire to put out a quality product with a quality staff of associates. She is also very upfront about faith and how that contributed to the foundation upon which the successful business was built. Finally, she does not shy away from difficult topics and problems that the family encountered over the decades. That makes this a very fair representation of the facts.

I enjoyed hearing about the origins of the secret menu items as well as the connection a certain comedy classic film from 1963 that happens to be an all-time favorite of mine too. The insider's guide sections at the end were also very informative.

My main thought while reading this was how much I wanted an In-N-Out burger and pink lemonade. My mouth was watering the entire time. It's too bad I live 1000+ miles away from the closest location.

I love learning about how companies and businesses get started. Lynsi talks all about the history of In-N-Out, both the good time and bad times. She was so open about her faith in God it was so refreshing. I always wondered why they have Bible verses on their bags, cups... It was neat learning some of the reasoning they chose those specific verses.

I found the book to be repetitive at times. If someone went through and cut back on the repetitiveness it would make for a better reading experience.

I also wondered why there were no locations on the east coast. Learning that they will not franchise and the fact that everything is completely refresh answered my question. Learning that they are expanding to Tennessee give me hope that they will start opening stores on the east coast. If you live near and In-N-Out go eat a double double for me.

This was a really delicious read, I enjoyed getting to learn about a restaurant that I’ve passed all the time. Lynsi Snyder does a great job in keeping you reading and getting the inside story of the popular restaurant.