Why In-N-Out Always Asks Customers This Seemingly Head-Scratching Question

In-N-Out actually pioneered drive-thrus at a time when drive-ins, like the iconic California restaurant featured in "American Graffiti," were starting their ascent on the American cultural landscape. The chain's growth and popularity have led to some fairly distinct characteristics associated with these car lines today, specifically their length and wait time. It's true that In-N-Out's drive-thru lines can sometimes wrap around the street corners, while people are willing to sit there for 30-plus minutes to get their high-quality, always-fresh fast food. But perhaps the long lines are simply a product of people taking a beat to consider this head-scratcher, asked at the speaker: Will you be eating in your car? As strange an inquiry as that might seem, it actually concerns how the workers will pack up your basic Flying Dutchman sandwich and fries.

If you were to respond no, you would end up receiving your food in a bag. But if you said yes, the employees would forgo a bag and instead hand you your purchase in a four-sided cardboard tray, perfect for balancing on your lap as you consume your Double-Double and animal-style fries. Mind you, the food still comes in little paper sleeves and baskets, and they also give you placemats — basically, little touches that make eating in your car as easy and neat as possible.

Did In-N-Out know that by having its employees ask this seemingly innocuous question at its drive-thrus, it would send part of the population into a downward spiral, doubting their eating habits and — for some — their very morality? The question famously made its way into a set by Tom Segura. In his expletive-laced joke, posted on TikTok, he describes how they'll ask the question, and then if you say yes, you'll experience a rush of shame. 

One comment on the video describes how it can get even worse: If you've ordered for your entire family, you're alone in the car, and they ask the question. On a clip of the same segment on Facebook, someone else commiserated and wrote, "Lived that moment last night [and] made that same face..." referring to the defeated, closed-eye expression Segura makes.

What's reassuring, though, is that whatever your reaction to the question, real employees have stated that they don't think anything of your responses in the affirmative. "We are required to ask that and don't care how you answer," a Redditor on the r/InNOut subreddit shared. "No need to feel bad about getting it for the car." So, in other words, there is no need for shame, as it's just In-N-Out employees doing their job.