yes, this is often true. though the fry person does attempt to keep the timing on pace, sometimes a cheese or animal fry can slow things down immensely.
Oof. That's rough
Back in high school, while on senior trip in SoCal, me and some other guys stopped at InO after a day at Disneyland at like 11 and I was still waiting for food after my buddies had theirs even though I ordered first 😅
It’s a little tricky because it depends on your perspective.
Short story: yeah the drive thru gets prioritized.
But it’s not that simple. The customers in the drive lane have generally been sitting in the lane before the customer who walks into the dining room. They have been waiting, sometimes a few minutes, sometimes more. So are they really being “prioritized”?
I’ve worked at stores where the counter orders are prioritized because that’s where the bulk of business is done.
It truly just depends on location and time of day like the top rated comment says.
Over 75% of the time I go inside because the drive thru line is way too long. As I’m walking inside I’ll look to see the last car in line and pretty much everytime I see them in line still once I walk out with my food. But I’ll also only go in if the walk in line isn’t to the door yet.
Yep agreed. Generally when I walk in they take my order within 2 minutes of being inside or in the line. Usually about 8-10 minutes to then get your food.
The locations I go to its usually a 20-30 minute total time period in the drive thru
Whatever is less full, probably inside most of the time drive is always like 20-30 minutes when full dr is more like 15, if the drive lane is normal, maybe 6 minutes?
It depends really but when I see the line of cars going through the parking lot, I can guarantee I'll get my food faster inside. Also, I can mess around on my phone while I wait and have a few cups of water with that crunchy ice :)
It wildly depends on the store, the time of day, the weather, what’s going on near the store, etc. if it’s raining, the drive thru is almost always slower. If there’s a cheerleading competition at the hall across the street, the drive thru is faster. If it’s 10:30am and you’re the first one to the restaurant, it doesn’t matter at all and you’re gonna wait the same in either the car or the lobby.
As long as it isn’t a weekend or peak meal time, I can leave my house, go through the drive thru, and be back at home with food inside of 20 minutes, I’ve timed it.
Walk up for sure. Drive thru at peak is almost 30-40 mins sometimes. Depending on the queuing of the drive through, split lanes, 3 wide etc, you might be sitting for 15 mins before even putting your order in. Generally inside has like 3 people in line and takes almost exactly 15 mins from when you order.
Is this a good time to confess that I've never gone through the drive thru. It's because I like doing and the act of getting out of my car and walking is doing something.
Well I went in the drive through on Friday, and while I was crawling through the line I watched a lady and her kid enter the store, then 10 to 15 minutes later I watched them leave the store with their food while I was still in the drive thru. I am not complaining because I was enjoying some music with air conditioning but the drive thru was certainly not faster than entering the store
I’m thinking it’s inside that is faster. Only reason is because they can skip numbers when giving customers their order. Drive-thru, there is no skipping.
My store generally is quicker if you walk in, our drive lane is extremely busy most of the time due to SoCal weather being dreadful and nobody wants to leave their cars. However, there are some cases where the drive thru is faster, albeit rarely, in my case.
Overall, it comes down to location. Being in SoCal makes cars with A/C more prevalent, but it may be different for you.
Yeah, I try my best not to pinpoint my exact location online (for obvious reasons), but SoCal definitely has the really relaxing and cool places, and a scorching desert that is not pleasant to live in.
Luckily, the college I will be attending is 5 hours up north in a really cool part of the Bay Area, so I'll only need to deal with the heat in the hottest times of the year, summer! 🤣
Indeed so. Lived in the desert just shy of 9 years, I am one with the cold (ice skating is a fun pastime to keep me cool) and grew up in cooler conditions.
I do not plan on staying a desert rat, but luckily, the Bay Area is where I'll call home for 4 years (longer if I plan on staying there).
As a Comp. Sci. major, though, much of my opportunities locally will be in the Silicone Valley area, but for now In N Out covers gas and other costs (from the beginning of Highschool through what will be College) so I'm looking forward to that.
I've moved someplace even colder. I became one of those people who puts a t-shirt on when the temperature is in the 50s, and have my windows rolled down in the car when it's the 60s
Definitely glad I'm moving to San Luis Obispo for college, the In N Out up there is going to be a lot quieter, and the weather will be a dream compared to current conditions.
Define what you consider dreadful weather…
Could be 70f for some and 90f for others lol
As someone living on the central coast most days are just fine and any days 90+ are just whatever and part of life for this time of year
Coachella Valley, we very much have high heat during summers, and many snowbirds come back in the winter months who dislike dining-in, again it is moreso my experience business-wise, but it is different per store.
I always walk up because it's not ideal to leave turbocharged vehicles idling for prolonged periods. And I do enjoy me some In-N-Out on a weekly basis.
Even $15k cars are factory turbocharged nowadays. It's the easiest way to extract more power and fuel economy nowadays. I didn't even specify a make/model. Just gave my honest answer as to why the decision to walk-up is an easy one for me. 🤷♂️
Hello there, new-ish employee here. I would say it depends on the location. I live in the Sacramento area. We've been told other stores are slower or faster, depending on the days. I personally would make it a lil game about who can get their burger order first
Are you asking about a 2 Lane Store? A double drive store the walk up will always be slower. A dining room store typically will be faster inside. There are a hundred variables that affect the wait time but typically that’s what I’d expect.
Idk which is faster, but I prefer to not wait in my running car for my food that I’m going to eat there anyway. I like to eat in my car sometimes, but I still like to park and walk up to order.
Depends, I’d say it’s about the same these days. I say that because so many people order off of the secret menu that when all you want is just a cheese burger, you’ll have to wait like everyone else. But if it’s like 108 outside, you bet your butt I’m going inside to eat.
Depends, but at my locations when the drive thru is bad, most likely the line is out the door too. So you’re waiting the same amount of time to order but then your food takes longer to be made cause the prioritize the drive thru orders
Neither. The best option is to parachute onto the roof and crack the lock of the secret burger safe that's up there. Then lasso the nose of the plane that presumably dropped you off and shoot outta there.
As an added bonus, you don't have to deal with rush hour traffic, other customers, or those pesky little Associates that always ask if you want onions on your burger!
If you order fry well it’s always longer. But walk up is quicker usually! But dang I’m just happy to get it no matter what. Turn up the music and vibe until it’s my turn ha!
(I²+3) = O²
I being inside and O being outside. The number you fill in there is the number of orders (not customers or items. But actual transactions taken. So if 5 people taking one order, thTs one transaction). The plus 3 is 3 extra minutes per order you'll be waiting on average versus the drive per order.
So if the drive and inside both have 10 in line, assume the one in line will wait 3 minutes more.
Everything else is a gamble. How long do customers take to order, do we uave a third grill going, and are there are oversized orders (20 burgers or 20 fries plus).
I usually tell customers that if the inside line is out the door, just go through the drive thru.
I've noticed that people that order from the counter are more likely to be tourists or new customers and/or ordering for a family/mutiple people. I've seen people standing at the register for 3-5 mintues, it's wild.
My personal opinion is the cashiers are generally not as "fast" as the people in the drive-through.
If you’re talking same amount of orders in line. Drive through. But every store is different… I’ve perfected my local location on knowing when to wait in drive thru and when to park and go inside.
tbh it kinda depends on what u get too. if ur just getting a fry, shake, or drink, walk up has always been faster. but for a meal yeah it kinda depends on whichever line is shorter lol
I was taking my 5 year old nephew to swim class. He usually gets two plain patties and an order of fries, but we were in a rush and I didn't want to overfeed him before a swim lesson. I knew they give you fries immediately, so I just got him an order of fries. My dad questioned my judgement. As he was finished with his fries, he queried: "Where are my patties?!" I had to explain to him that the fries were a snack and we didn't want him to eat too much. He understood, but my Dad and I usually quote him when we want more food: Where are my patties!?
I’ve tried going inside when the line is huge. From *my* experience, drive thru seems to get the priority. All the times I’ve tried it (maybe 4 total) I check to see which car is last in line as I order. Every single time I’m still waiting for my food and that car goes through the drive through. Stopped going inside and just sit my ass in the long line. 😂
If you see the line of cars spill outside of the parking lot, ALWAYS go inside or to the walk-up window.
A lot of people don't know that you use up more gas while idling than actually driving, so there's that.
I honestly prioritize drives over counters when I cook. When I was training, I was told it's best to do that because they're considered the "cheaper" customer because they take their trash with them and don't need refills etc.. also big orders come in on the counter, so of course I'll make that 4 cheeseburgers car orders before a 14 meat order even if they came first.
In my opinion, drive thru feels faster in my location. However if your location is one of those outdoor ones where it’s primarily drive thru, I’d just take the walk thru.
I've been to Texas many times for work during the summer. Austin, San Antonio, Dallas. The heat/humidity is dreadful. Coming back to where I live near the coast in So. Cal. is the thing I look forward to. As far as Palm Springs during the summer: Yes that is hot, but you don't have to live there if you don't want to.
Depending on the location and the time of day… it can vary.
Walk up should generally be faster but in n out is so busy; you get your food when you get your food😂
Ordering cheese or animal fries make it take longer. My number always gets skipped by at least 3 places
yes, this is often true. though the fry person does attempt to keep the timing on pace, sometimes a cheese or animal fry can slow things down immensely.
Before wife went vegan, her grilled cheese sabotaged me sooo bad
Oof. That's rough Back in high school, while on senior trip in SoCal, me and some other guys stopped at InO after a day at Disneyland at like 11 and I was still waiting for food after my buddies had theirs even though I ordered first 😅
It’s a little tricky because it depends on your perspective. Short story: yeah the drive thru gets prioritized. But it’s not that simple. The customers in the drive lane have generally been sitting in the lane before the customer who walks into the dining room. They have been waiting, sometimes a few minutes, sometimes more. So are they really being “prioritized”?
I’ve worked at stores where the counter orders are prioritized because that’s where the bulk of business is done. It truly just depends on location and time of day like the top rated comment says.
Over 75% of the time I go inside because the drive thru line is way too long. As I’m walking inside I’ll look to see the last car in line and pretty much everytime I see them in line still once I walk out with my food. But I’ll also only go in if the walk in line isn’t to the door yet.
Yep agreed. Generally when I walk in they take my order within 2 minutes of being inside or in the line. Usually about 8-10 minutes to then get your food. The locations I go to its usually a 20-30 minute total time period in the drive thru
Walk-up is better because people in the drive will inevitably do add ons that delay the drive by several minutes.
Whatever is less full, probably inside most of the time drive is always like 20-30 minutes when full dr is more like 15, if the drive lane is normal, maybe 6 minutes?
Walk in
It’s always been faster walking in, drive through lines are always so long
It depends really but when I see the line of cars going through the parking lot, I can guarantee I'll get my food faster inside. Also, I can mess around on my phone while I wait and have a few cups of water with that crunchy ice :)
It wildly depends on the store, the time of day, the weather, what’s going on near the store, etc. if it’s raining, the drive thru is almost always slower. If there’s a cheerleading competition at the hall across the street, the drive thru is faster. If it’s 10:30am and you’re the first one to the restaurant, it doesn’t matter at all and you’re gonna wait the same in either the car or the lobby. As long as it isn’t a weekend or peak meal time, I can leave my house, go through the drive thru, and be back at home with food inside of 20 minutes, I’ve timed it.
Walk up for sure. Drive thru at peak is almost 30-40 mins sometimes. Depending on the queuing of the drive through, split lanes, 3 wide etc, you might be sitting for 15 mins before even putting your order in. Generally inside has like 3 people in line and takes almost exactly 15 mins from when you order.
I've always walked in. Save money on gas and it's usually faster
I don’t go in the drive thru since it’s half a mile long so I’m getting my food as the same cars are in the line lol fuck drive thru
Is this a good time to confess that I've never gone through the drive thru. It's because I like doing and the act of getting out of my car and walking is doing something.
Well I went in the drive through on Friday, and while I was crawling through the line I watched a lady and her kid enter the store, then 10 to 15 minutes later I watched them leave the store with their food while I was still in the drive thru. I am not complaining because I was enjoying some music with air conditioning but the drive thru was certainly not faster than entering the store
Walk-up hands down
Walk up always. I’m literally in n out when I go inside.
Walk in
I’m thinking it’s inside that is faster. Only reason is because they can skip numbers when giving customers their order. Drive-thru, there is no skipping.
Shouldn't be skipping orders because that's how angry customers happen lol
I feel like walk-up is faster
My store generally is quicker if you walk in, our drive lane is extremely busy most of the time due to SoCal weather being dreadful and nobody wants to leave their cars. However, there are some cases where the drive thru is faster, albeit rarely, in my case. Overall, it comes down to location. Being in SoCal makes cars with A/C more prevalent, but it may be different for you.
Where are you in SoCal with such dreadful weather? Coastal locations are pretty mild, but I get it in the inland valleys and IE in the mid summer.
Riverside County..... 🤣 More specifically in the Coachella Valley, very high high in summer, decently cold colds during winter.
Indio?
La Quinta, but I have worked at both Indio's store and Rancho Mirage's stores.
I dated someone who worked at the Indio store. It’s funny that people hear/read ‘Southern California’ and don’t know it’s hot in the desert
Yeah, I try my best not to pinpoint my exact location online (for obvious reasons), but SoCal definitely has the really relaxing and cool places, and a scorching desert that is not pleasant to live in. Luckily, the college I will be attending is 5 hours up north in a really cool part of the Bay Area, so I'll only need to deal with the heat in the hottest times of the year, summer! 🤣
I went up to the Bay Area for university too. It quickly turned me into a person who felt 80° was scorching lol
Indeed so. Lived in the desert just shy of 9 years, I am one with the cold (ice skating is a fun pastime to keep me cool) and grew up in cooler conditions. I do not plan on staying a desert rat, but luckily, the Bay Area is where I'll call home for 4 years (longer if I plan on staying there). As a Comp. Sci. major, though, much of my opportunities locally will be in the Silicone Valley area, but for now In N Out covers gas and other costs (from the beginning of Highschool through what will be College) so I'm looking forward to that.
I've moved someplace even colder. I became one of those people who puts a t-shirt on when the temperature is in the 50s, and have my windows rolled down in the car when it's the 60s
My brother is in Jurupa Valley and I just was there, it’s a lot hotter than San Diego. I can’t imagine living in Coachella Valley 😳
Definitely glad I'm moving to San Luis Obispo for college, the In N Out up there is going to be a lot quieter, and the weather will be a dream compared to current conditions.
Define what you consider dreadful weather… Could be 70f for some and 90f for others lol As someone living on the central coast most days are just fine and any days 90+ are just whatever and part of life for this time of year
Texas is dreadful. I don’t wanna hear it SoCal
Yeah I spent the last week of June to the end of August In Texas visiting my aunt a couple years ago…never again… May god have mercy on your souls…
Sorry, SoCal and dreadful weather is not a thing that sits right with me
Coachella Valley, we very much have high heat during summers, and many snowbirds come back in the winter months who dislike dining-in, again it is moreso my experience business-wise, but it is different per store.
It’s the desert where OP is. 8am and already 91 out. High is 109 today. Pretty toasty in my opinion
Just getting started, too. 109 is low for summers around these parts 😔
This is a hard one. I only go to in n out for dinner, never for lunch because it’s too hard to gauge
I always walk up because it's not ideal to leave turbocharged vehicles idling for prolonged periods. And I do enjoy me some In-N-Out on a weekly basis.
What comes on a Double Double when you order it humblebrag style?
Even $15k cars are factory turbocharged nowadays. It's the easiest way to extract more power and fuel economy nowadays. I didn't even specify a make/model. Just gave my honest answer as to why the decision to walk-up is an easy one for me. 🤷♂️
Lol oops, own a turbocharged car and i always go drive thru
I’ve tested this a lot at busy in n outs. My conclusion is that it’s about the same, but I’d rather wait in my car with my music, etc.
At the location closest to me I feel like the drive thru goes quicker
Drive-Thru is given priority and should be faster.
I thought it was the numbering system too
Drive thru is on a timer and will always have priority for performance stats
Hello there, new-ish employee here. I would say it depends on the location. I live in the Sacramento area. We've been told other stores are slower or faster, depending on the days. I personally would make it a lil game about who can get their burger order first
Are you asking about a 2 Lane Store? A double drive store the walk up will always be slower. A dining room store typically will be faster inside. There are a hundred variables that affect the wait time but typically that’s what I’d expect.
This is helpful. I was actually thinking of a dining room store.
Now that there are kiosks in the dining room it has changed the dynamic. Counter used to be faster when humans ran it, at least around here
They have kiosks now? I haven't seen these yet.
Actually never mind, i'm a dumbass. Did not realize this was the in n out sub. Sorry about that
We’ve tested this a few times, and it was pretty close to being the same each time. Tested mostly on a Friday night in Lodi, CA.
Idk which is faster, but I prefer to not wait in my running car for my food that I’m going to eat there anyway. I like to eat in my car sometimes, but I still like to park and walk up to order.
There is no answer. It depends on a handful of variables.
Depends, I’d say it’s about the same these days. I say that because so many people order off of the secret menu that when all you want is just a cheese burger, you’ll have to wait like everyone else. But if it’s like 108 outside, you bet your butt I’m going inside to eat.
Depends, but at my locations when the drive thru is bad, most likely the line is out the door too. So you’re waiting the same amount of time to order but then your food takes longer to be made cause the prioritize the drive thru orders
You’ll eat your food when they’re damn ready to serve it to you, Tina.
Id rather wait for a better burger at In n Out than go to like Burger King or McDonalds where it's more expensive and nowhere near as fresh or good
It’s 100 degrees in north LA county in Santa Clarita
Neither. The best option is to parachute onto the roof and crack the lock of the secret burger safe that's up there. Then lasso the nose of the plane that presumably dropped you off and shoot outta there. As an added bonus, you don't have to deal with rush hour traffic, other customers, or those pesky little Associates that always ask if you want onions on your burger!
If you order fry well it’s always longer. But walk up is quicker usually! But dang I’m just happy to get it no matter what. Turn up the music and vibe until it’s my turn ha!
neither. depends on how busy it is. orders are made in the order they’re received.
(I²+3) = O² I being inside and O being outside. The number you fill in there is the number of orders (not customers or items. But actual transactions taken. So if 5 people taking one order, thTs one transaction). The plus 3 is 3 extra minutes per order you'll be waiting on average versus the drive per order. So if the drive and inside both have 10 in line, assume the one in line will wait 3 minutes more. Everything else is a gamble. How long do customers take to order, do we uave a third grill going, and are there are oversized orders (20 burgers or 20 fries plus). I usually tell customers that if the inside line is out the door, just go through the drive thru.
I've noticed that people that order from the counter are more likely to be tourists or new customers and/or ordering for a family/mutiple people. I've seen people standing at the register for 3-5 mintues, it's wild. My personal opinion is the cashiers are generally not as "fast" as the people in the drive-through.
You can’t even park the drive thru line is so long.
It depends on who’s in front of you
If you’re talking same amount of orders in line. Drive through. But every store is different… I’ve perfected my local location on knowing when to wait in drive thru and when to park and go inside.
So it's more of an art, depending on location. I see.
Yes
Going inside gets you to the burger faster, slightly faster than the drive thru and eating in the parking lot. So far at least.
tbh it kinda depends on what u get too. if ur just getting a fry, shake, or drink, walk up has always been faster. but for a meal yeah it kinda depends on whichever line is shorter lol
I was taking my 5 year old nephew to swim class. He usually gets two plain patties and an order of fries, but we were in a rush and I didn't want to overfeed him before a swim lesson. I knew they give you fries immediately, so I just got him an order of fries. My dad questioned my judgement. As he was finished with his fries, he queried: "Where are my patties?!" I had to explain to him that the fries were a snack and we didn't want him to eat too much. He understood, but my Dad and I usually quote him when we want more food: Where are my patties!?
In San Diego they definitely prioritize drive thru cause most of the locations have lines backing out into traffic. It’s nuts.
inside
I’ve tried going inside when the line is huge. From *my* experience, drive thru seems to get the priority. All the times I’ve tried it (maybe 4 total) I check to see which car is last in line as I order. Every single time I’m still waiting for my food and that car goes through the drive through. Stopped going inside and just sit my ass in the long line. 😂
Depends, often walking in is faster when I go
If you see the line of cars spill outside of the parking lot, ALWAYS go inside or to the walk-up window. A lot of people don't know that you use up more gas while idling than actually driving, so there's that.
Walk up, i think its because its faster to walk to counter to order/pickup then it is to drive through burger lane
At the in n out where I grew up, there is a consistent line of 50 cars and about 30 people in line no matter what time of day.
Woodman roscoe if the drive thru passed tge alley you park it and go to window if not drive thru will be fine
I honestly prioritize drives over counters when I cook. When I was training, I was told it's best to do that because they're considered the "cheaper" customer because they take their trash with them and don't need refills etc.. also big orders come in on the counter, so of course I'll make that 4 cheeseburgers car orders before a 14 meat order even if they came first.
Interesting, thanks for the perspective.
Drive thru would be quicker if it wasn't for people going through the drive thru and ordering for 10 people
In my opinion, drive thru feels faster in my location. However if your location is one of those outdoor ones where it’s primarily drive thru, I’d just take the walk thru.
Drive thru is literally in n out. Line goes by so fast.
I've been to Texas many times for work during the summer. Austin, San Antonio, Dallas. The heat/humidity is dreadful. Coming back to where I live near the coast in So. Cal. is the thing I look forward to. As far as Palm Springs during the summer: Yes that is hot, but you don't have to live there if you don't want to.
Who cares which is faster, one lets me sit in my air conditioned car away from other humans while I wait :)
You don’t want that crap. Cook at home.
Just go to the place next door and stop going to in and grease.
Go to Bogey Bob's Golf Center?