I love In-N-Out and everyone knows it, but the last time I had a Double-Double® was over a year ago, before I moved here.
On Friday, a friend forwarded me a Facebook ad screenshot about an In-N-Out event in Shinagawa on Saturday. I expected a long line, but I underestimated how much this event would test my patience. I took a train and a monorail to arrive at the pop-up location at 8:30am. I was handed a wristband and a Double-Double® keychain.
Hundreds of people were before me, and another couple hundred after me. The pop-up opened at 10am and closed at 4pm. But one hour before they even opened, they ran out of wristbands and closed off the line for new people. They had accurately pre-determined how many customers they could serve within that time frame. Being able to see the end of the line made me fear this would take hours.
It did. I waited six long hours before I got to the counter. The food itself came out within a couple minutes.
Most of the staff was from California, which is super cool and interesting to me. At least one person was from Tokyo but moved to California four years ago. Handy to have people who can speak both languages at an event which will have both American and Japanese fans lining up!
Note: These events seem to happen once a year in countries that might legally require a company to have products in commerce if they want to protect their trademarks. While a Double-Double® is standard, this menu also highlighted Animal Style® and Protein Style®, two modifications that are hidden from the US menu boards.
It’s weird to realize that the only reason I get to enjoy a Double-Double® in Tokyo is because of trademark law.
I loved seeing this familiar menu board with prices in Yen! Though I knew there wouldn’t be fries, potato chips (??) are a wild substitution. No shakes. Also, limited to one burger per person / wristband. Understandable, but… after waiting for 6 hours, I was quite hungry.
Familiar design elements were present, like Quality you can taste® in fake neon and paper coverings simulating In-N-Out red palm tree tile and wallpaper.
Authentic In-N-Out cups. Bible quotes and all.
For me, the best detail was the receipt. Having a receipt labeled In-N-Out in Tokyo, Japan feels very special. Menu modifications weren’t allowed, but since they ran out of whole raw onions before I got to the counter, they let me switch to grilled onions (GR).
The chips were just normal potato chips. No complaints, just weird. The fry basket was atypical; no bible quote.
And here’s the bit you came for. The Double-Double® was everything I have come to expect, exactly as it should be. After six hours, it’s hard to say it was worth the wait, but I’m happy I got to eat one regardless. If I go next year, I’ll be better prepared.
