How Gordon Ramsay's Love For In-N-Out Shaped His Vegas Burger Joint

Gordon Ramsay has a reputation for being high-strung and making high-end food. But when it comes to burgers, the inspiration for his Las Vegas-based Gordon Ramsay Burger restaurant came somewhere more casual. In an episode of the Mythical Kitchen podcast as seen on YouTube, Ramsay describes that moment of inspiration, gushing about how much he loves the California fast food chain, In-N-Out Burger. For a chef whose name has become synonymous with high standards, he comes across as very down to earth, calling the chain "incredible" and praising how "everything is sourced locally." Identifying the perfection of In-N-Out's simplicity, he notes that "it's a perfect drive-thru."

Who among us has not gone to a great fast food spot like In-N-Out and pondered how to recreate the magic at home? That regular-guy delight is endearing because Ramsay experiences the same rapture we all do on the first bite. Yet, he has the mind, technical skills, and resources of one of the most TV-famous chefs in the world. When he opened his first burger spot in Vegas, he was told repeatedly that it wouldn't work, so like a hamburger-Willy Wonka, he took to the lab.

Ramsay describes spending "about nine months" working through different blends of chuck and rib, trying to figure out how to stand out and approximate the pleasure of biting into a Double Double — his favorite In-N-Out order. Then came the breakthrough. "The secret, the turning point for me," he shared, "is when I started basting the burgers in Devonshire butter." It makes sense, as a British chef, that he would call on his cultural sense memory to aid his American burger ambitions.

What's interesting is that the chain doesn't baste its burgers in butter. In-N-Out's official allergen information states that the patties contain 100% beef and a simple seasoning of black pepper, salt, and canola oil. This revelation only makes how good In-N-Out burgers taste even more impressive. How they do it, we may never know. It's just one of those beautiful mysteries that makes life worth living.

What Ramsay seems to have taken from the chain is not the literal method, but the feeling of a burger so good that it lodges in your brain so deeply you're kind of always craving one — all In-N-Out fans know exactly what this ephemeral feeling is. Butter basting is a classic restaurant trick, because butter brings rich, nuanced flavor, absorbs and distributes volatile flavor compounds from other seasonings, encourages browning, and makes food taste grounded and complete. Ramsay's specific use of the high quality, dark yellow Devonshire butter is intentional. "Devonshire cows are full of fat [from] the grass they graze on," he notes. It's true, you can actually taste the difference between regular and grass-fed butter.

Butter is basically the reason restaurant food often tastes so good. Professional cooks are not shy about seasoning and fat; they understand they are tools to wield for a better finished product. Home cooks often hesitate, because much like Ramsay himself, butter and salt have a notorious reputation that precedes them. But despite their controversy, they're undeniably good.