CaliBurger Brings In-N-Out Ideas to Shanghai
SECOND UPDATE 12-09-2011: CaliBurger sampled. See here for our first taste of their burgers and bourbon milkshakes: http://shanghai.talkmagazines.cn/blogs/2011-12-09/first-bite-caliburger
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UPDATE 12-09-2011: We received an email on the morning of 9 December 2011 from the Caliburger side saying:
"We settled our case with IN-N-OUT yesterday. As a result, we are not going to do the Soft Opening today. We will open in January using different names for the products."
WIll keep you posted as we find out more. Wonder if this means the CaliBurger Girl is here with nothing to do...
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We spent the afternoon with the guys from Caliburger, the new burger joint in town that is making waves for billing its products in typical In-N-Out fashion, what with its 'Animal-Style' fries and 'Double Double' burgers. Yes, the boys behind the Caliburger franchise admit they're using the same terminology, and some of the same processes, but it's not all a rip-off.
While In-N-Out is a mainstay in the Western United States, the burger chain, which has been around since 1948, didn't trademarked their menu items in a lot of locations outside of America. Caliburger took the liberty of acquiring the trademark in 11 countries, including Russia, Korea, China and some of Eastern Europe. As one might guess, In-N-Out has sued Caliburger for trademark infringement, but that isn't stopping the ersatz burger joint. The federal district court judge in Los Angeles makes the final decision on 21 November. While lawyers expect the court to rule in favour of Caliburger, there is the possibility of an injunction that will stop them from using In-N-Out's menu terminology. That ruling will have no effect on the opening date (9 December, for those wondering); instead the menu phrasing will change to accomodate the ruling.
According to John Miller, a member of the board of the parent company, which is based out of the Cayman Islands: "Our goal is to actually have an innovative – I don’t wanna say better – product that will be inspired by In-N-Out, but there’s some originality and innovation on how they’re made and offered."
To achieve this lofty goal, they're still debating about where to source their meat (they've got domestic beef from Hebei and Qingdao, but are considering flying in product from Australia). Most of their sides and toppings are domestically sourced, including a daily shipment of potatoes that adhere to American standards. They spent two weeks in their Shanghai test kitchen searching for the perfect non-waxy potato to make their fries. Most of the condiments, like pickles and mustard, are imported.
Only time will tell whether the burgers will live up to In-N-Out's, but the plan is shaping up quickly. Delivery is in the works, and there's a free flow fountain soda bar and wireless at the Jing'an restaurant. Locations are being scouted for more stores in Jinqiao, Thumb Plaza and the French Concession, not to mention Korea and Russia.
To find out more about the brand, check out their website at www.caliburger.asia, where you can also choose from a dozen girls to represent the great state of California at the grand opening. Voting for the Caliburger Girl contest has already started on their website.
We'll keep you posted on how this "cooked to order, fast food with service" joint pans out.
Yanping Lu, near Xinzha Lu. Web: www.caliburger.asia
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