In-N-Out Burger just opened in Meridian. The drive-thru wait? Up to 8 hours

Published at 1:50 pm, December 12, 2023 | Updated at 1:54 pm, December 12, 2023

Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman

In and Out — After waiting in a long line, a hungry Sasquatch finally gets to the In-N-Out door with an “animal style” appetite. In-N-Out opened its first franchise in Idaho on Tuesday at The Village at Meridan. | Darin Oswald, Idaho Statesman

MERIDIAN (Idaho Statesman) — The estimated wait time for a meal by drive-thru at In-N-Out’s new Meridian location was, by noon Tuesday, up to 8 hours long.

Fans of the Irvine, California-based burger chain camped out overnight in their cars and outside in the 30-something degree weather Monday night to beat the crowds at the fast-food restaurant’s long-awaited opening at The Village at Meridian. Construction on a Boise store is set to begin early next year and a Nampa location is also in the works.

By the time the restaurant at 3520 E. Fairview Ave. opened earlier than planned Tuesday morning, hundreds of people were already waiting to roll through the drive-thru for burgers, fries and shakes in a procession of cars that snaked through The Village’s big parking lot. The line began in a dirt lot near Urban Outfitters, where a sign warned potential customers it could be a wait of 7-8 hours.

A line to get in the lobby curved out the door and along the sidewalk, stretching down Fairview Avenue, though it seemed to move quicker.

The restaurant is In-N-Out’s first in Idaho, and its 400th nationwide. It’ll employ about 80 workers with a starting wage of $17.50 an hour. The store is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. and until 1:30 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.

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