In-N-Out Burger Ventura Review

In-N-Out Burger Animal Fries Double-Double & Burger

Ate at the In-N-Out Burger Ventura today - a Saturday at noon in July. Yah, it was going to be busy. Sitting at the rather slimy booth people watching was a bit like being ringside gazing on a slice of Americana - at least the West Coast edition. That's always interesting.

But the dining room / seating area was pretty filthy when we arrived. Tables, chairs, floor, the whole thing. Another pet peeve of mine is watching staff wipe a table down with just a damp cloth - spreading God Knows What from the prior surface to yours - and simply spreading whatever was on your surface around - not really cleaning it at all. We asked for a clean up and got the smear. Ick.

The floor was sticky too. Never a nice sound or feeling.

Yes, I know it was a busy time. So, your point? How a restaurant, burger joint or food truck does when it is busy is the real measure of the chef and kitchen management team - not how they do when it is slow.

As usual at In-N-Out, the young staff was friendly, helpful and professional. I've rarely encountered any jerks at any In-N-Out. The company really deserves commendation for the way they hire and train what is nearly always a very young group of servers and cashiers.

Our Animal Fries were fresh and hot but there was a giant lump of essentially unmelted cheese in the middle. That was a miss for sure. I had a Double-Double which looked pretty good, was hot, and rather tasty, but unfortunately was sporting a gargantuan pile of unmanageable lettuce. As I was eating this became an unruly green missile that headed for the sidelines. Sloppy and rushed work on the cooking line in the kitchen folks.

My companion had a standard burger with grilled onions and that seemed to be prepared properly.

Pros: Nice attentive staff, predictably decent food and value for the money
Cons: Really dirty dining room; sticky floor