The year was 1948. World War II was in the rearview mirror and in Los Angeles, drive-in restaurants were in full swing. Those food stands that first began sprouting up more than a decade earlier had evolved. In a city where the number of drive-ins was said to equal the number of cars, they were destinations with bright neon signs, whimsical architecture, expansive parking lots and costumed carhops — serving patrons using specially made trays attached to their car windows.
Customers, fans really, have told me of the lengths they've gone to eat a Double-Double, from sending the burgers by plane to driving through the night. The French Laundry’s Thomas Keller described to me the pilgrimage he makes when in Los Angeles with the friend who first introduced him to In-N-Out — accompanied by a good bottle of wine. The French-born, New York-based Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud called its burger “perfection.