Why Doesn't In-N-Out Burger Serve Bacon?

In-N-Out is known for its fresh, tasty burgers, served up with a variety of toppings, from grilled onions to chilis to Animal Style sauce, but there's one topping you'll never find on an In-N-Out burger, no matter how much you plead and beg. It's simply not a possibility and you won't find an ounce of it hiding back in the burger chain's kitchen anywhere. What is this mysterious missing toping? Bacon.

It's a surprising exclusion from the In-N-Out menu, especially considering how frequently and easily you can find bacon-topped burgers, fries, and more at just about every other fast food restaurant. So what's the deal? Rumor has it, the eatery just thinks it's too good for bacon. No, really. It all comes down to high-quality standards — at least that's the speculation. According to a Quora user, bacon is one of those things that's just too difficult to get right and In-N-Out might not want to risk a less-than-ideal dining experience for its loyal fanbase.

Well, there's a lot. Fast food bacon isn't really considered the epitome of high quality — usually, it's so thin it's translucent, overly crispy, and on the older side. To offer high-quality bacon cooked on In-N-Out's current grills, employees would need to slow down burger production, the speculating Quora user explains, resulting in lost sales. Additionally, keeping bacon fresh is a labor-intensive task and requires special storage.

So, no, In-N-Out has never offered bacon and likely never will. If you do want some bacon on your In-N-Out burger or fries, you may just have to bring your own, like one Serious Eats writer did, lugging a cutting board and all to the restaurant. But don't worry, there are still plenty of other tasty, if bacon-less, ways to enjoy your In-N-Out meal, whether you want to chow down on a Flying Dutchman, Animal Style burger, grilled cheese, root beer float, or even a Neapolitan shake (via Secret Menus).