An interesting contrast to In-N-Out is Five Guys (http://www.fiveguys.com http://www.fiveguys.com), originally a DC-area regional chain. They're only 20-somethi

An interesting contrast to In-N-Out is Five Guys (http://www.fiveguys.com http://www.fiveguys.com), originally a DC-area regional chain. They're only 20-something years old, but they're opening new locations on seemingly a near-weekly basis. It's arguable how much of a bond they've built with their customers, considering their rapid expansion, but when I ate at a recently opened one near Seattle, it was packed. The common link, in my opinion, is that both chains go all out for quality (Five Guys, for instance, posts the city of origin of the potatoes used for their fries on a daily basis). And the food truly is on a different level versus your average fast food place. In the end, success for both seems to come down to the old maxim: make [burgers] people want.