The Historical Post That's Causing Instagram To Thank In-N-Out

In-N-Out Burger has not been without its share of controversy over the years. More recently, it was in the media for its stance against Covid vaccine mandates. It's also been accused of backing anti-LGBTQ movements because of its financial support for particular political organizations — a practice Chick-fil-A decided to forgo to protect its reputation, per Forbes. Despite all this, the 74-year-old fast food chain still has a large following and is responsible for some American innovations that other restaurants continue to emulate to this day.

According to QSR, In-N-Out founder Harry Snyder's 1948 invention of a two-way speaker box meant the restaurant was one of the first to develop the modern drive-thru ordering system. Unlike other fast food outlets, whose aim was to expand and conquer, the Snyders' focus remained on perfecting the quality of their product and making sure their few family-operated locations ran smoothly. 

Moreover, In-N-Out's focus on employee happiness has translated to superior customer service and ratings, experts believe. This might explain the overwhelmingly positive response to the burger chain's recent Instagram post. After all, it's not often that a fast food company can post a personal photo on social media and get feedback as if it were an old friend rather than a business.

On Harry Snyder's birthday, September 9, In-N-Out posted a photo of Harry, Esther Snyder (his wife and co-founder), and their children on Instagram, captioning the post, "Harry's unwavering commitment to providing his customers with the freshest, highest quality food in a spotless, sparkling environment has given In-N-Out a reputation for excellence. We remember and cherish him always!" Snyder passed away in 1976 of lung cancer, per KCET.

Admiring comments on the Instagram post said, "Not only the King & Queen of my absolute favorite burger, their legacy represents the highest standards of customer service, consistency, and respect within the workplace." Another gushed, "Thank you Harry & family for your dedication to providing great food at a good value." Other kind words read, "Thank you Harry and Ester! You gave the world something great! It's what we miss most about California."

Perhaps the reasons people feel this way toward In-N-Out's founding family can be found in Stacy Perman's book, "In-N-Out Burger: A Behind-the-Counter Look at the Fast-Food Chain That Breaks All the Rules." Perman writes that when Snyder's son Rich took over the business, he carried on his father's philosophies. He believed "that running a successful fast-food-business was not about cutting corners or purchasing the right equipment" (via Investment Masters Class). Like his predecessor, he valued employee satisfaction, explaining the chain's ethos as this: "If you lose your workers, you lose customers."