What You Didn't Know About The In-N-Out Food Truck

Anyone who has the slightest idea of what In-N-Out is can tell you one thing: You're not going to find it everywhere. Unlike your average McDonald's that's only a few minutes from your house, most In-N-Out locations are exclusive to the West Coast area. Although many people would prefer if In-N-Out expanded its horizons, the main reason for the chain's steadfast refusal to expand nationwide is rooted in its promise of quality control and keeping the company privately owned. 

As Business Insider explains, In-N-Out locations are built near its distribution facilities in order to ensure that the meat and produce arrive as fresh as possible. To expand or franchise the company would also remove the Snyder family, the original founders, from the control of the company. While it may not sound fair to those on the East Coast, one can't deny that it's been a pretty good system for In-N-Out so far.

That doesn't mean that In-N-Out burgers can't come to you. According to Eater, you could pay to have an In-N-Out meal shipped across the country to wherever you wanted, albeit for a pretty steep price tag of $50 for a Double-Double. The Daily Meal details how one could send an In-N-Out burger to a friend across the country, treating the cheeseburger like a particularly greasy piece of mail.

In-N-Out has even offered to take its burgers on the road, revving up its engines to bring burgers to any event you want — but not without following certain criteria.

In-N-Out's Cookout Trucks don't resemble your average food truck. They instead look as if someone converted an 18-wheeler into a grease-spitting, burger-flipping, highway-pounding mobile In-N-Out. While these Cookout Trucks are perfect for any sort of event, be it a birthday, corporate event, or you just have some money lying around and want to surprise your neighbors, the idea of a fully mobile In-N-Out sounds too good to be true. 

And like most things, there's a catch or two to keep in mind.

In-N-Out's Cookout Trucks serve a very limited area, consisting mainly of Los Angeles and Orange County, but also select spots in Ventura, Denver, Colorado Springs, San Bernardino, and the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. This means that you can't expect the In-N-Out team to haul its mobile kitchens to New York, Pennsylvania, or any other East Coast state. 

If you do manage to get a Cookout Truck to your location, you may be a bit disappointed with the menu selection. In-N-Out's trailers serve only burgers — no fries, no shakes, only burgers. While this may not be a problem for some, others may have expected more bang for their buck. You can, however, get hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and grilled cheese, so it's not like you're stuck with one item.

If you can't get a Cookout Truck to your home or don't live near an In-N-Out, you could always try this copycat recipe for an In-N-Out cheeseburger to hold you over.