WASHINGTON — If you happen to be a fan of the International House of Pancakes (better known as IHOP) and follow the breakfast chain on social media, you’re well aware that it’s been hyping a name change.
For about a week, IHOP has been posting as “IHOb,” and asking its fans to guess what the “b” stood for. Many people chimed in with their guesses, including Questlove, the drummer from The Roots, who wanted to know if the b stood for “breakbeats.”
International House Of Breakbeats @IHOP @ihob?
— T’Questlove (@questlove) June 6, 2018
The chain, which opened its first restaurant in Burbank, California, in 1958, played along all week, even going so far as changing the signage outside its restaurant in Hollywood to “IHOb.”
International House of Breakfast? #IHOb pic.twitter.com/q62B5150p5
— Blake Buell (@blake_buell) June 7, 2018
Some wondered if the “b” stood for “breakfast,” since after all, the restaurant serves bacon, eggs, omelets and more along with its traditional pancakes.
But no, the stunt wasn’t that easy to figure out.
In an effort to put the spotlight on its lunch and dinner offerings, the chain announced on Monday that the “b” stands for “burgers.” It revealed a number of new burgers on its menu, calling them “ultimate steakburgers,” including a “big brunch” burger that comes topped with an egg.
That, however, wasn’t the end of the day’s “IHOb” related jousting on social media. One Twitter user asked the burger chain Wendy’s if it was just going to stand-by and let a pancake house encroach upon its turf.
so @Wendys u just gonna let @IHOb sell burgers on your block? thought you were the og?
— Tony X. (@soIoucity) June 11, 2018
Wendy’s shot back, saying they’re “not really afraid of … a place that decided pancakes were too hard.”
Just north of Washington, D.C. the University of Maryland Baltimore County athletic department’s Twitter account got in on the action, too.
No, we are not changing our name to University of Maryland, Burger College.
— UMBC Athletics (@UMBCAthletics) June 11, 2018
The Retrievers were the sensation of the NCAA basketball tournament in March when they defeated the top-ranked University of Virginia. The Twitter handle gained thousands of followers overnight. And no, they will not make burgers their specialty in the next academic year.
