How Julia Child Actually Felt About In-N-Out

Everyone has an opinion about In-N-Out Burger, even Julia Child. In an interview with Larry King, she shared how she actually felt about the chain: "It's awfully good." So good that she famously kept a list of In-N-Out locations near her home in her purse. Born and raised in California, the TV personality shared the state's obsession with this locally-founded fast-food chain.

Child is known for complex French cuisine but also enjoyed a range of snacks from the supermarket aisle or fast-food restaurants, from Goldfish crackers (served before Thanksgiving dinner) to Costco hot dogs, and of course, burgers. Her favorite burger was simply topped with onion, pickles, and ketchup. No Double-Double, any style for Ms. Child, then? Based on her own recipe, the basic In-N-Out Hamburger would likely have been Julia Child's choice ... and perhaps she brought her own pickles. 

Julia Child did not think food had to be fancy or complicated to be good — "just good food from fresh ingredients," via WGBH. In-N-Out is similarly committed to fresh ingredients, including 100% beef chuck in its hamburgers. In one of Child's episodes of "The French Chef" called "Hamburger Dinner", she, too, suggested using beef chuck for the best burger, adding just salt, pepper, and a little bit of cream, as she said her friend, "Jim Beard" did. Fine food is how you enjoy it, and for Julia, a "hamburger dinner followed by champagne is fine," via YouTube. 

Julia Child, like other well-known chefs, led a busy life and looked for simple, comforting food after work, which she could get from that bright red sign with the yellow arrow. Alice Waters, famed Chez Panisse chef, and acclaimed chef, Daniel Boulud, are also fans, with Boulud going as far as to call it "perfection," (via Los Angeles Times). The late Anthony Bourdain swore by In-N-Out, saying, "It's the only fast-food chain that I actually like," per YouTube.

This West Coast burger icon started in Los Angeles and has been cranking out the same burgers and fries for more than 75 years. It has reached cult status, with its own pop culture references in movies like "The Big Lebowski" and "Pulp Fiction." A-list celebrities from Julia Roberts to Reece Witherspoon and Aziz Ansari have all been photographed enjoying their In-N-Out burger.

The usually publicity-shy Snyder family, owners of In-N-Out Burger, maintain tight control of the business, not allowing franchising and rejecting all offers to buy them out. In 2023, Lynsi Snyder, the third-generation owner, wrote her own book, "The Ins and Outs of In-N-Out Burger," to explain why the burgers stay the same and why she thinks their patrons are so loyal -– the family's commitment to its customers, or as they call them, "our number one." Julia Child was certainly an enthusiastic member of that number one group.