In-N-Out Burger prides itself on its 1950s-style decor, unchanging, minimalist menu and mouth-watering burgers that consistently draw Stanford students to its two Mountain View locations. But beneath the shiny veneer of its Formica countertops there has been a flurry of activity in recent months - the death of the chain’s co-founder, an internal legal battle, and multiple offers to buy the company - and left some industry observers wondering what the future holds for the burger giant.

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Adrian Gaitan

The new In-N-Out off Rengstorff, in Mountain View.

Speculation about the company’s future ramped up after the Aug. 4 death Esther Snyder, 86, who co-founded In-N-Out Burger with her husband in 1948. Both of Snyder’s sons are dead, and so ownership of the company passed to her 24-year-old granddaughter, Lynsi Martinez.

But the trouble brewing at the fast food chain first began late last year with a flurry of internal lawsuits, when Richard Boyd, the company’s vice president for real estate and development and a member of the board, sued In-N-Out after he was fired, alleging that the company had let him go because he opposed rapid expansion plans that might destroy the chain’s hallmark burger quality.

In the suit, Boyd claimed that Martinez was conspiring with her brother-in-law Mark Taylor, who was then an executive and was named company president after Snyder’s death, to speed up her takeover of the company (under the guidelines of Martinez’s trust, she will gain control over the chain in incremental stages over the next decade). The company countersued Boyd, charging him with embezzlement and fraud.

The suit was settled out of court in May, and both sides agreed to confidentiality clauses, leaving the terms and the truth a mystery. But that hasn’t stopped speculation that there may be changes ahead at In-N-Out.

A source close to the situation, who requested anonymity because of a confidentiality agreement, told The Daily that the burger chain is besieged daily by investors interested in buying the privately-held company. But a sale, the source said, is unlikely to happen anytime soon.

“The company says time and again that they have no interest in selling and that the family looks forward to owning it for many generations,” the source said.

In-N-Out Burger did not respond to e-mail and telephone inquiries.

But even if In-N-Out remains in the family, the company could decide to move beyond California, Nevada and Arizona, where its 202 restaurants are now concentrated. The chain could also opt to expand faster, as Boyd’s lawsuit alleges Taylor and Martinez secretly plan. In an effort to head off these grumblings, the company released a statement after Snyder’s death pledging to continue to grow at “a moderate and deliberate pace.” The company currently opens 10 to 12 new restaurants every year. But the company, known for its secrecy, has said little else, inevitably leading to speculation from industry observers.

Ron Paul, president of Technomic, a Chicago-based restaurant-consulting firm, said growing too quickly is notoriously risky territory.

“The danger is demonstrated by firms like Krispy Kreme, which has basically imploded, and Boston Market,” Paul said. “You tend to make real estate mistakes because you are so anxious to grow that you make bad decisions.”

But, Paul added, In-N-Out’s business model is so simple and its menu so basic, even rapid expansion probably would not threaten burger quality, and that the chain’s fans need not worry.

“I haven’t changed my In-N-Out habits when I’m on the West Coast,” he said.

In-N-Out is a traditional staple of a Stanford undergraduate diet, so much so that a group of seniors created a delivery company, Chompz, last winter to shuttle burgers from Mountain View to students’ doors for a small fee. Co-founder Sam Yam, a co-terminal student, said that he has not heard of the turbulence at In-N-Out, but it seems to be business as usual at the chain his company frequents.

“Going to In-N-Out every single day, the quality seems first and

foremost in people’s heads,” he said. “The employees seem pretty happy and excited every time I walk in and order 30 burgers.”

If In-N-Out executives needed more testimonials that confidence in their food quality is at an all-time high, they could point to Paris Hilton. The 25-year-old socialite, who has appeared in television commercials for fast food chain Carl’s Jr., was arrested for drunk driving Sept. 7 and went on the radio the next morning to explain herself.

“I was just really hungry,” she said, “And I wanted to have an In-N-Out burger.”