IHOP Is Now IHOB, An International House Of Burgers

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By  Kevin Pang

There we go, folks: The weeklong mystery of IHOP's name change has been revealed—and the 'B' in IHOB, turns out, isn't breakfast, bulgogi, or bullshit.

Turns out it's burgers, the chain announced Monday, and it appears not to be some fleeting promotional campaign or practical joke UPDATE: Turns out the name change is temporary. Though its website is still using the IHOP URL, most of the logos have been changed to reflect its new IHOB name, and featured front and center are promotions for its new line of burgers. It reads: "Our new burgers are so good, we changed our name."

IHOB will offer seven burgers on its menu to start, including a mushroom and swiss burger; a Cowboy BBQ burger with bacon, barbecue sauce, and onion rings; and a Big Brunch burger with bacon, fried egg, cheese, and hash brown shoestring potatoes. It appears that the house of burgers, so far, is more domestic than international.

It is a sign that the 60-year-old brand is venturing beyond breakfast, and expanding its menu to compete with other casual sit-down chains like T.G.I. Friday's, Applebee's, and Red Robin. It comes shortly after news that parent company Dine Brand Global (which also owns Applebee's) was shuttering 30-40 IHOP locations this year to shore up its financials.

The new logo, however, still looks a bit too close to o.b. tampons.

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