California’s newest In-N-Out is officially serving up Double-Doubles, and fresh photos show burger fans are wasting no time christening the drive-thru.
The newly minted outpost anchors The Canopy, a 12-acre, 90,000-square-foot outdoor shopping and dining hub taking shape at Irvine’s massive $1 billion Great Park. Clocking in at roughly 1,300 acres, the sprawling mega project dwarfs Manhattan’s 843-acre Central Park.
New photos captured on opening day on Friday reveal the unmistakable energy of an In-N-Out debut.
The iconic red and white burger spot was buzzing with activity, with staffers in crisp white uniforms, red aprons and paper hats slinging wrapped burgers, and packing iconic red trays with fresh-cut fries for the first wave of hungry customers. The 3,808-square-feet indoor dining room’s 84 seats were quickly claimed, where mothers snapped pictures of kids perched on red swivel stools and teens took selfie’s enjoying that very first bite of a burger.
Employees were hustling between cars, taking orders as cars lined up at the drive-thru lane, which was designed to accommodate 33 vehicles. Outside, sun-soaked diners tore into their food on the 500-square-foot patio.
Operating hours will run from 10:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 1:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday — giving late-night burger fans plenty of time to get their Animal Style fix.
The burger mecca will be just one of the many big names headed to The Canopy, including Philz Coffee, The Taco Stand, H&H Bagels, SHOOTZ and Canadian Asian grocery giant T&T Supermarket, among others.
The Great Park also includes a gigantic new entertainment and recreation zone featuring two lakes with multiple cascading waterfalls, a Great Meadow, walking trails and even a farm.
Plans also call for a 10,000-seat amphitheater, called The Amp, and a 194-acre athletics hub packed with soccer fields, baseball and softball diamonds, volleyball courts and one of the region’s biggest soccer stadiums.
Elsewhere, developers are building what is being called the “Cultural Terrace,” a massive arts and museum district that will include the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, the Asian American History Museum, a Pretend City Children’s Museum and other exhibit spaces housed partially in restored military hangars.
The park’s northern section will feature a sprawling botanical garden with trails, dry creeks, maze gardens, arboretums and themed spaces. A Veterans Memorial park and Garden is also planned, preserving portions of the old military tarmac as a 1,100-foot-long “Walk of Honor” dedicated to Orange County veterans.
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