I would like to hear from In-N-Out fans about the quality of their product compared to maybe 10 years ago.
My opinion: not nearly as good now as 10 years ago. I gave them up.
In Los Angeles there is no better burger for the money.
The only other chain that is better IMO is Five Guys but that is almost twice the cash and so are the Independents that are tastier than In N Out.
For the money, The Habit is probably the best. It is char broiled and you can get a combo for around $7.
I'm not a big fan of 5 Brothers. It's a big burger, but was rather tasteless.
The best burger, but it is pricey, is The Counter. They grind their own meat on the premises so you can safely order you burger rare (or even raw!) if you want. The fries are those shoe string type which are OK, but not great. But then In 'n Out fries are like chalk with no taste at all.
Johnny Rocket's is OK, but a combo will cost you over $10. The fries, however, are really really good.
I live in the South Bay area of LA. The best chili burger (even better and definitely healthier than Tommy's) is Tomboy's if you like those.
And what happened to Carl's Jr.? It used to be good and even char broiled but lately seems to be seared and flabby. Of the big chains I prefer Wendy's and even Burger King over Carl's. Saying that in my childhood would have been heresy.
that pretty much always happens
A store/chain opens, has high quality and good value, then as their costs go up, their quality goes down to prevent price increases.
This is happening with food in general as well.