Citizen Staff Writer
Tucson Citizen
news@tucsoncitizen.com
For those expecting a stampede akin to the welcome the first In-N-Out Burger in town received, the second opening was much more tame.
Only seven people camped out early Thursday morning to be first in line at the new In-N-Out in Marana.
Thursday’s wait: five minutes.
That’s compared with hundreds of eager customers in line when the El Con store opened April 24. The wait then: more than two hours.
Though about 50 workers were prepared to handle expected crowds, Assistant Manager Steve Oroeco, was not disappointed with the lighter turnout.
The crew had 8,000 patties ready to be made into the famous Double-Doubles (double meat, double cheese) with onions, he said.
And Marana Police set up a command post nearby.
“I guarantee that by noon,” Oroeco said, “it will be awesome.”
As lunchtime neared, there were about 30 cars in the drive-through, said Rodney Campbell, community relations officer for the Town of Marana.
Despite the seemingly cooler greeting in Marana, customers were happy to get the burger joint at 8180 N. Cortaro Road.
“We used to drive to Phoenix, get one and drive back,” said Angie Belden, one of the store’s first customers.
Jamie Duerfeldt and her husband, Scott, were at the opening Thursday morning.
“We’ve been waiting so long for In-N-Out to come here,” she said. “Every time we went to California, we ate there.”