In-N-Out ends secret menu price hack

In-N-Out has found a way to benefit from one of its secret menu items.

Avid customers of the West Coast-based burger chain previously created a “secret menu” item called the Flying Dutchman which consists of two meat patties with two slices of cheese — no bun or toppings. To get the menu item for less money, customers would order the patties and cheese individually. However, a recent memo from In-N-Out’s Chief Operating Officer Denny Warnick may have the customers reconsidering.

According to the memo, which was posted on Reddit, the chain will be raising its prices on both patties and slices of cheese to account for the profit loss.

“Currently, we sell individual meat and cheese patties at the same reduced price that we charge to add an extra patty and slice of cheese to a burger,” Warnick wrote in the March 20 memo. “The new price of a meat and cheese patty will be aligned with Flying Dutchman pricing — a meat and cheese patty will be half the price of a Flying Dutchman.”

The memo continued explaining if customers only wanted to add an extra patty or slice of cheese to their burgers, they would be charged the regular price.

A Flying Dutchman ordered as is costs around $5.50 in California, according to SFGate, but customers were paying $3.40 by ordering just two patties and two slices of cheese.

This isn’t the first time In-N-Out has spoken out about their secret menu. Back in August 2023, the fast-food chain revealed where their “animal style” name came from.

As for what it entails, “animal style” refers to a burger with a beef patty grilled with mustard then served with pickles, lettuce, grilled onions, and signature sauce — which the company refers to as “spread” — on a toasted bun. Animal style fries, meanwhile, are topped with cheese, spread, and grilled onions.

Lynsi Snyder, one of the owners of In-N-Out, shared the chain’s secret, and other unknown details about the restaurant, in her book released in October 2023 titled, The Ins-N-Outs of In-N-Out Burger: The Inside Story of California’s First Drive-Through and How it Became a Beloved Cultural Icon.

It turns out the secret menu item name comes from rowdy customers or “animals.” Snyder wrote that these customers “would honk their horns while orders were taken,” or they would “leave trash on the lots and play their music extra loud.”

According to Snyder, they were sometimes so rowdy they would get into fights with each other.

At the time, employees at In-N-Out were called “helpers” who began to call these customers “animals.”

“Good naturedly, the helpers inside referred to them as ‘animals,’” Snyder wrote.

She added that one night in 1961, an “animal” spotted a manager making himself a burger. The joint was originally designed with floor-to-ceiling windows so customers could watch burgers being prepared, which was co-founder Harry Snyder’s idea, as he “believed customers would enjoy seeing their food made with care,” Snyder explained.

The customer was intrigued as to what this burger was and asked him what was in it. “It’s mustard fried,” Roberts responded, according to the book. “I add pickles, grilled onions, and extra spread.”

In response, the customer said: “Sounds amazing. Can you make me one too?” according to the book. Roberts obliged, and “the guy wolfed it down,” calling it the best burger he ever had, Snyder wrote.

The customer liked it so much that he continued to order it, but had no idea what to call. Eventually, Roberts told him, “Just call it Animal Style,” according to Synder.