Mental Floss

In-N-Out Workers Reveal Which ‘Secret Menu’ Items Are Fake

“We're gonna laugh at you if you order it.”

Jake Rossen|
In-N-Out employees are fed up with the secret menu.
In-N-Out employees are fed up with the secret menu. | SOPA Images/GettyImages

Consumer brands love engagement, but West Coast burger chain In-N-Out might be experiencing some social media fatigue. According to Los Angeles affiliate KTLA, the home of the Double-Double is being targeted by influencers who keep adding to their “secret menu” of orders. The problem? Virtually none of the orders actually exist.

For years, In-N-Out has nurtured rumors of several off-menu orders. While the items aren’t listed on the restaurant’s dining room menu, hence their “secret” label, they’re available for anyone to reference on the official In-N-Out website. You can find them below, in no particular order:

  • Double Meat: Two patties on a single bun
  • 3x3, or Triple Triple: Three patties with three slices of cheese on a single bun
  • 4x4, or Quad Quad: Four patties with four slices of cheese on a single bun
  • Grilled Cheese: Melted cheese on a bun with no patties
  • Protein Style: Patties wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun
  • Animal Style: A burger with extra spread, grilled onions, and a patty cooked with mustard

Strictly speaking, these are semi-custom orders, not “secret” items. But the idea of a secret menu has compelled In-N-Out fans to seek out more obscure orders. As KTLA reports, there are a few that appear legitimate:

  • Flying Dutchman: Two plain patties with cheese and an optional onion wrap
  • Lemon Fries: French fries with squeezed lemon
  • Scooby Snack: Plain patty in a wrapper
  • Roadkill Fries: French fries with crumbled meat
  • Neapolitan Shake: Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry milkshake

The rest? Mostly fiction. Doggy Style Fries are purportedly fries with cheese and chopped-up hot dogs. Monkey Style burgers come with Animal Style fries (meaning fries with cheese, grilled onions, and special spread) placed on the patty. Neither can be ordered at In-N-Out—the chain doesn’t even sell hot dogs—which often leaves employees aggrieved.

“No will honor this,” one purported employee commented on a viral video sharing the fake items. “We’re gonna laugh at you if you order it.”

A video promoting Monkey Style burgers even prompted a rare rebuke from In-N-Out president Lynsi Snyder, who responded with a raised-eyebrow and thumbs-down emoji.

While employees may not respond to buzzy phrases, it’s possible they can still accommodate your order. Want to shovel fries in your burger? Ask them, but don't expect them to understand Monkey Style.

KTLA did find one accurate menu “hack”: customers can order a “pup patty,” which is a burger without salt meant for dogs.

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