These Are The Customers Behind In-N-Out's 'Animal Style' Burger

Items on In-N-Out's Not So Secret Menu have never been much of a secret, even before the menu's official release. If you know about In-N-Out, then you know about "Animal Style." In-N-Out's Animal Style burger is perhaps the cornerstone of the entire chain.

The burger, which appears on the Not So Secret Menu, features a patty grilled with mustard and topped with lettuce, grilled onions, pickles, and In-N-Out's signature spread. The fast food restaurant also offers Animal Style french fries smothered in the same spread, with cheese and grilled onions. It's no wonder Julia Child was an In-N-Out fan.

The burger's unconventional cooking method and ambiguous name have puzzled customers since its inception. Lynsi Snyder, owner and president of In-N-Out Burger, revealed the story of how unruly customers are behind the coveted secret menu item in her recent book that chronicles the ideation and history of the iconic chain (via Independent). As with any good story that takes place in a burger joint, it begins with an exchange between a cook and a diner.

In the chain's early days, certain customers who frequented the restaurant were often raucous, leaving trash dispersed throughout the parking lot, laying on their horns as orders were taken, and blasting music from their car speakers. In-N-Out employees used to refer to these customers as "animals."

According to Snyder, in 1961, a manager was grilling a burger for himself, searing it with drizzled mustard and layering it with what we now know as Animal Style toppings. Like a lion stalking its prey, one customer — an animal, if you will — noticed the specialty burger in preparation. The customer asked to try one, devoured it, and ordered it again on repeated visits. The custom burger's popularity spread, leading the manager to call it "animal style."

Animal Style fries and other items on the Not So Secret Menu come from customizations that customers have requested. For diners who want hints of Animal Style without all of its bells and whistles, requesting a mustard-grilled burger will do the trick.