When Californians relocate to Texas it’s not the chicken-fried steak or the barbecued beef briquet that they crave.
As more Golden State warriors head east, fleeing the high prices and crime of the state’s urban centers for the wide open spaces and sprawling suburbs of the Lone Star State they keep their taste for In-N-Out, according to a new statistical report from Placer.ai.
And the trend is driving sales of the fast-food chain through the red roof.
Despite California Governor Gavin Newsom’s campaign to staunch the flow of population to Governor Greg Abbott, more than 1 in 10 new Texans come from Los Angeles, San Francisco or any number of California locales.
Californian transplants in Texas keep their craving for the Golden State delicacy of In-N-Out
In-N-Out’s Double Double, seen here, offers two beef patties, two slices of cheese on a bun
More and more Californians and big corporations are fleeing the state for Texas, seeking lower rent and taxes
More than 1 in 10 new transplants to Texas come from California, despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s effort to stem the bleeding
So it’s perhaps no coincidence that trips to Texas In-N-Out shops jumped a whopping 35.3 percent between 2019 and 2022. McDonald’s, Burger King and other fast food joints saw only a 1.1 percent increase in the state over the same period of time.
The study from the analytics firm found between 2019 and 2022 1.6 percent of new settlers in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area came from Los Angeles County.
So it figures that the burger chains in Dallas saw a 24.4 percent jump in visits over the last three years, whereas other fast-food restaurants only saw a 0.9 percent increase, according to Placer.ai’s report.
It would make sense that In-N-Out traffic is highest in DFW, there are 23 of the burger palaces there, according to fast food company.
In-N-Out, which first opened in Texas in 2011, but since then has spread to Houston, San Antonio and even Waco.
California’s population declined again in 2021 for the second consecutive year
Billboards warning residents to not ‘move to Texas’ have popped up in major California cities in reference to the Uvalde school shooting. The eerie billboard features famous Texan slogans and a suspicious man in a hoodie and sunglasses
One billboard in the San Francisco was seen at the corner of Folsom and 7th Street leased to FoxPoint Media advertisers
The cult-like following of the fast food restaurant is hard to fathom. It’s been featured in movies like ‘The Big Lebowski’ and ‘Swingers’ and on the TV shows ‘Arrested Development’ and ‘The Simpsons.’
Californian’s drool over the basic menu, which consists of burgers, fries, soft drinks, and milk shakes. No McSalads Shakers here. The belly-bursting Double-Double has two beef patties, and two slices of cheese.
As much as Californians love In-N-Out, it doesn’t seem to be enough to keep them in the state.
About 280,000 more people left California for other states than moved here in 2021, continuing a decades-long trend.
More than 300,000 residents fled the Eureka State for Texas from 2010 to 2019.
Between 2018 and 2019, about 50,000 Californians moved to Texas per year, according to US Census Bureau data. Meanwhile, the number of people moving to California from Texas in those two years was about 35,000 per year.
With an estimated 39,185,605 residents at the end of the year, California is still the most populous US state, putting it far ahead of second-place Texas and its 29.5 million residents.
But after years of strong growth brought California tantalizingly close to the 40 million milestones, the state’s population is now roughly back to where it was in 2016 after declining by 117,552 people this year.
More companies have hopped on the bandwagon to also move to Texas as the state boasts low corporate taxes at around 20 percent – one of the lowest in the country.
Texas is in the middle of the country, making it an attractive central hub for travel and communication. Corporate rent is also low in comparison to major US cities, including Los Angeles and San Francisco.
About 250 companies have moved to the Lone Star state since Gov. Abbott took office, including Tesla, Oracle, and Joe Rogan’s production company.
Last week, mysterious billboards popped up in San Francisco and Los Angeles bidding California residents to stay away from the Lone Star State.
‘The Texas Miracle Died in Uvalde. Don’t move to Texas,’ the sign said.
As the number of Californians fleeing the state amid a higher cost of living proceeds, Newsom has ramped up 2024 campaign by slamming the Republican states of Texas and Florida and their laws on abortion and guns.
In-N-Out launched in Texas in 2011, including this location in San Antonio. Now, there are 43 of the burger outposts in the Lone Star State
California Governor Gavin Newsom (left) has gone after his Texas counterpart Greg Abbott with full-page newspaper adverts about abortion and gun violence
Newsom’s ads are slated to run in the Austin American-Statesman, Houston Chronicle and El Paso Times
Newsom took an aim at Abbott in July by running ads in major Texas newspapers with the message that gun violence is responsible for killing children in California.
‘If Texas can ban abortion and endanger lives, California can ban deadly weapons of war and save lives. If Governor Abbott truly wants to protect the right to life, we urge him to follow California’s lead,’ the ad reads.
The Democratic governor’s ad came after another in Florida begging people to move to the Golden State.
‘I urge all of you living in Florida to join the fight – or join us in California, where we still believe in freedom,’ the ad read.