The man who brought the famed Double-Double to In-N-Out Burger’s menu died last week. He was 87.
Bob Lang Sr. was a longtime executive with the Irvine, Calif.-based chain who was hired in 1954 by the late co-founder Harry Snyder.
Lynsi Snyder, Harry Snyder’s granddaughter who now owns the company, wrote on Instagram that Lang “did things the In-N-Out way for 54 amazing years. He was deeply committed to quality, so much so, that my grandpa told him he cooked the best burger.”
Lang was also the chain’s youngest store manager when he took over the Baldwin Park, Calif., location at age 19. When the chain reached six units in 1966, it was Lang who suggested adding the Double-Double to the menu. Harry Snyder liked the idea so much, the double-patty cheeseburger was added to the menu systemwide.
The Double-Double has since become an iconic menu item—for Californians, in particular, perhaps more widely embraced than a Big Mac or Whopper. In-N-Out is now nearing 400 locations across seven states.
Lynsi Snyder wrote that Lang did many great things, but perhaps the greatest was “his values-based leadership and friendship.
“Bob always comes top of mind when people reflect on the greatest people and leaders they have ever known to work here, and for making the biggest impact on their career and life,” she said in the post.
One of those people was his son, Robert Lang Jr., who joined In-N-Out Burger in 1973 and rose through the ranks over 45 years to become executive vice president of operations before retiring about five years ago, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Lang leaves his wife Lynn Lang; sister Nancy Peterson; children Robert Lang Jr., Mike Lang, Kelly Delizo and Andrea Hernandez; as well as 11 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, according to the Times.
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