Devoted fans of IHOP might be saying to themselves IHOPE the restaurant chain gets this right. The division of Dine Brands Global is set to make a big announcement Monday — and it's believed to be a new name altogether. "For 60 pancakin’ years, we’ve been IHOP," the chain said on Twitter. "Now, we’re flippin’ our name to IHOb. Find out what it could b on 6.11.18." This isn't the first time IHOP has cooked up a change. Founded by Al and Jerry Lapin in 1958, the International House of Pancakes abbreviated its name to IHOP in 1973. Though many fans still remember the original name, speculation about the apparent name change is swirling. Could it be breakfast? Bacon? Burgers? We shall soon find out. Either way, the chain is under pressure to carve a new path toward growth amid struggles for casual dining chains. More:IHOP tweet hints at changing name to 'IHOb' starting June 11 More:Up to 120 more Applebee's and IHOP restaurants will close, signaling a big shift More:Applebee's apologizes for racial profiling at restaurant, fires 3 employees Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.<doc-sep>Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook Twitter PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – IHOP has finally revealed its new name will be IHOB, International House Of Burgers, and the internet is losing its mind over the announcement. 👦: Grandpa, do you remember the Great Burger Wars? 👴: lol no I was chillin drinkin milkshakes and trying to make sense of Westworld — Denny's (@DennysDiner) June 11, 2018 Thank God @WaffleHouse will never become the Burger House!! pic.twitter.com/pGr0YLwySr — Chris Cope (@ChrisCopeComedy) June 11, 2018 We are excited to announce that we will be switching our name to Pancake Castle. — White Castle (@WhiteCastle) June 11, 2018 Although the name is temporary, the restaurant chain best known for breakfast says it wants people to know they are taking burgers as seriously as their pancakes. I am literally here right now!! they do look delicious 😋 pic.twitter.com/aEspnuzqfU — Lidia S (@lidiaisabell) June 11, 2018 However, many on Twitter did not take the announcement so seriously. IHOP is now IHOb. Now Denny’s will become Danny’s. — Shawn Smith (@gbbcountry) June 11, 2018 Not really afraid of the burgers from a place that decided pancakes were too hard. — Wendy's (@Wendys) June 11, 2018 As much as we love our pancakes, we'd never change our name to Whatapancake — Whataburger® (@Whataburger) June 11, 2018 We don't usually throw shade, but seriously? That's what all that was about? Here's a real burger for you. #ChilisBoss #IHOb pic.twitter.com/eTVmtd9vir — Chili's Grill & Bar (@Chilis) June 11, 2018 The Phillies even joined in poking fun at the company flipping the “p” in their name. In fairness, #IHOb is already how it's pronounced when it's 3 AM, you're drunk, and you're asking a policeman where you can get pancakes — Kent Sanderson (@MrKentSanderson) June 5, 2018 And some were just plain upset the restaurant would go through a temporary name change just to announce new burgers on the menu. This is how I feel about the IHOP/IHOb situation. It’ll never be IHOb. IHOP for life. pic.twitter.com/JtGmWzQfHR — Sam Dekker (@dekker) June 11, 2018 I am simply APPALLED by this #ihob news. BURGERS? BURGERS?! WHAT ABOUT BREAKFAST??? pic.twitter.com/X09HROJkDC — Amanda Guerra (@AmandaGuerraTX) June 11, 2018 So @IHOb is apparently "international house of burgers" I mean Who Is going to go here Instead of 5 guys Or red Robin Or almost any other place that sells burgers Who — Brandon Casteel (@bccasteel) June 11, 2018 I’m confused, you might as well just kept yourself as ihop and just announce that you will be serving burgers….. it doesn’t make sense — Nu 🇯🇲🤘🏽 (@nu_theman) June 11, 2018 Whether you liked the name change or not, there’s no need to panic, the company says their pancakes aren’t going anywhere.<doc-sep>IHOP changed its name to IHOb last week in a move that confused customers. While many loyal pancake lovers thought the "b" might mean "brunch" or "breakfast," the restaurant chain announced on Monday that the "b" actually stands for "burgers." "Changing the name, even if it's a little bit gimmicky, does bring traffic and attention to the stores," Stephen Anderson of the Maxim Group told CNBC on "Closing Bell" Monday. But the name change isn't permanent. The same day the meaning behind the "b" was revealed, the chain restaurant announced in a press release that the move was "just for the time being." The marketing strategy will promote the seven new burgers that the restaurant is adding to its menu. Meanwhile, signage at the company's flagship restaurant in Hollywood, along with its Twitter handle, have been changed to reflect "IHOb." The company tweeted about its new name as well. TWEET "This is a measure that's being done to increase the afternoon and evening traffic," said Anderson, an equity research analyst at Maxim. He pointed out that the pancake house is well known for its morning fare, with more than 50 percent of its customer base coming in for breakfast items. "They're not about to advance in that business," he said. "It's the people who come in after 11 a.m., who may not necessarily want a Rooty Tooty Fresh 'N Fruity," Anderson said of a popular pancake offering at the restaurant. "They want something else. Burgers and sandwiches are very close to what IHOP has done traditionally." The International House of Pancakes has actually been serving burgers since 1958 when the restaurant first opened — although most people don't realize it. And the burger business is a fast-growing one, increasing about 3 percent to 3.5 percent a year. "This is where IHOP is staking its claim to get more incremental traffic," Anderson said. And "IHOb" might be a clever way to do it. In fact, this tactic has been done before — and it worked. In 2008, Pizza Hut, owned by parent company Yum Brands, temporarily changed its name at select U.K. locations to "Pasta Hut," in an effort to promote its pasta dishes. "It met with similar mixed opinion, but in the 12 months after they used [the name] "Pasta" they had sales increase by 1½ percent," Anderson said. Dine Brands, parent company of IHOP, rose more than 2.5 percent Monday.<doc-sep>
The world is still recovering from the news that IHOP — now officially IHOB — has changed its name to the International House of Burgers. People had been wildly speculating about what the “B” in the new acronym could possibly stand for, and in true Twitter fashion, the reveal on Monday morning was dramatic. Dear Internet, we abbreciate your batience. Now let’s see who guessed right. B-hold!!!!! #IHOb pic.twitter.com/Fh3SkZ7s3Y — IHOb (@IHOb) June 11, 2018 Wendy's took notice and lived up to its notoriously savage Twitter rep by dissing IHOB's big announcement. Remember when you were like 7 and thought changing your name to Thunder BearSword would be super cool? Like that, but our cheeseburgers are still better. — Wendy's (@Wendys) June 11, 2018 But Wendy's didn't stop there. Minutes later, it delivered another shot at its competitor that was even more fierce. Not really afraid of the burgers from a place that decided pancakes were too hard. — Wendy's (@Wendys) June 11, 2018 The latter tweet won the admiration of other food-related accounts, including MoonPie. Wendy’s this is so good — MoonPie (@MoonPie) June 11, 2018 The Pop-Tarts account gave Wendy's high marks, too. MoonPie I second that and Wendy's great work A+ you've earned your pay can we all go home now — Pop-Tarts (@PopTartsUS) June 11, 2018 White Castle decided to pile on, slinging its own saucy remarks on the internet. We are excited to announce that we will be switching our name to Pancake Castle. — White Castle (@WhiteCastle) June 11, 2018 Burger King went with a similar joke, changing its Twitter name and picture to "Pancake King." But IHOB isn't trying to beef with any of its rivals. Instead, it's trying to make peace. We don’t want any beef with you, we just want to share our beef with the world — IHOb (@IHOb) June 11, 2018 It even extended an invitation to skeptic Chrissy Teigen. If the name change doesn't win her over, maybe the legendary pun will. All in is all we know. Come try one if you want a new legend in your life. — IHOb (@IHOb) June 11, 2018 Despite its rebranding efforts, an IHOB representative told TODAY Food that the chain's signature pancakes and all-day breakfast favorites will remain available.