IHOP flipped the script. In a marketing move that some described as an eye roll, the International House of Pancakes' twitter account announced IHOP's P would become a B for a hot minute. Burgers.
We've already argued our case: Not brunch? Breakfast? Benedict? Bacon? Blerg.
Still, I decided to give IHOP's new burger menu a try. Is this P to B particularly beneficial?
It starts strong. Diners get a separate burgers-only menu that helps drive home the fact that IHOb is taking this new marketing plan bery seriously. But they aren't so dedicated that they trained the servers by having them taste each new burger: My (very likeable) server hadn't tried any.
IHOb's new menu is a list of seven "steakburgers" that includes a commendable list of combos any legit burger place needs: a cheeseburger, a spicy one, a few with bacon, and a giant, two-patty gut-buster. I went with the one I thought repped my home state of Texas the best: the Cowboy BBQ, a beef patty topped with bacon, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, barbecue sauce and two fried onion rings.
What I got was a 950-calorie burger cooked medium well with its stack of ingredients placed artfully. The burger was over-cooked -- I asked for medium -- but crazy juicy. It was a little hard to eat, as the stack of onion rings made it too tall. And the bottom of the brioche bun was soggy after a few bites, though the top was buttery and delicious. Do you want to know more? I mean, it's a burger at a place known for serving pancakes and coffee when people are supposed to be sleeping. My burger was pretty good. Not better than Dallas' best.
Nobody's going to confuse IHOb with a gourmet burger place, but should you be the kind of IHOP diner who wants to try, add avocado to any burger for 99 cents.
And tip your server well: Mine was attentive but not smothering. Brought extra napkins before I asked. Offered me a water to-go, because it's hot out there. She was a delight.
But the best news about IHOb's new menu has nothing to do with burgers.
The 2 most important things to know about IHOb's new burger menu:
- According to the menu, every burger comes with a side of "unlimited fries." It doesn't exactly matter if you take them up on this challenge. The fact that it's available should offer you, as it did me, an instantaneous happy-sad-happy moment.
- Diners can swap their side of fries for another side like hashbrowns or fresh fruit. Or, A SIDE OF PANCAKES. Shame on me: I didn't know I could gets Ps with my B until after I ordered. It would have made for an awesome Instagram photo.
If you were worried that IHOP was getting lame on their pancake game, I'm here to confirm: They are not. Ps with Bs forever.
Disclaimer: I'm one person, who tried one burger, a day after IHOP's #IHOb scheme broke out on the internet. Your results may vary.
