Matter of PrINciple....

Most people that know me know about my In-N-Out story/episode. Some people thinks it's stupid or stubborn of me to hold a grudge against arguably the best burger franchice in the history of the hamburger. First off, even though I haven't had In-N-Out going on 11 years, I still claim it's the best burger and fries money can buy. It truly is. The food I don't knock. And the customer service is excellent 99.5% of the time. Unfortunately for me- or for In-N-Out- depending on how you see it, is that one of the times that fall into the .5% percent was a time I was at In-N-Out.

The In-N-Out on Maryland Parkway (UNLV campus) was the store that did it. I had just enjoyed an animal-styled double-double and was going out to my truck to go home. My truck battery was dead. I needed to call someone for a ride or call a cab. This was before I had a cell phone, so I took some change and decided to use the pay phone out in front of the In-N-Out. To my dismay the pay phone was out of order. No biggy. I decided to go into In-N-Out and ask to borrow their phone. I kindly asked if I could use the phone and was told No. I explained that the payphone was broken and the answer was still No. I then asked the employee to see the manager. I was told No, he's busy. Lastly, and I was still being nice, I asked the employee if he could call Triple AAA for me. The answer- No. I was told that I could use the payphone outside several times (even though I stated several times it didn't work) and then I was told 'store policy' was to not let custiomers use the phone.

I wasn't asking for free food or the money in the register and I understand store policies but I thought this was ridiculous. On top of that the guy was being rude to me when he wasn't even busy. Very rare for In-N-Out to not be busy but at this time they weren't. I swore to myself after this experience I would never purchase In-N-Out burger again. I would not give one single cent to the company. To this day I haven't. Do I miss their burgers? At times, yes. It's damn good food. Will I ever go back to an In-N-out? Doubtful.

Many people think it's silly that I do this but it's OK. I think it's a matter of principle and I'm sticking to my guns. And considering how many high caloric choices there are out there I'm sure I'll be just fine without In-N-Out burger. They lost a customer for life. And I'd say that I used to eat In-N-Out about 5X a year. Doesn't sound like much but at 5X a year times $7 bucks a meal that's $35 a year. And take that times 11 years and that's $385 they losy out on so far. I'm sure they'll be just fine without me as I will without them.

Until Next Time.....