Remember that whole brouhaha (not prouhaha) when IHOP announced, last June, that it was flipping its final letter upside-down to change its name to IHOb -- as a way of calling attention to the addition of a few burgers to its menu?

Well, I guess the restaurant chain formerly known as International House of Pancakes is a glutton for punishment (not bunishment) and publicity (not bublicity, OK, enough) and arguably not too good at coming up with fresh ideas, because it’s at the whole coy name-change thing again.

“What could the P be? Find out June 3. #IHOP,” IHOP tweeted on Memorial Day, while the rest of us were busy barbecuing and spending quality time with our loved ones. Alongside that message was a video in which IHOb became IHOP – and the message “We heard you.”

Wha?

There were some guesses, not all of them safe for work. One acceptably tame one came from Mr. Peanut, who suggested that the P might stand for “PEANUTS.”

“We’re nut telling yet,” IHOP responded. (So maybe … puns?)

“I'm guessing pancakes on burgers... maybe,” wrote one person.

“Probably not… but definitely not definitely not,” IHOP evasively answered.

One person guessed, “Please not this again i can't take it.” Or perhaps that was just a heartfelt plea.

Anyhow, on Tuesday, IHOP put forth a second mystery tweet: “Last year, the Internet had a lot to say about IHOb. Well, we heard you. Stay tuned for June 3. #IHOP.”

“P is for patience as we're almost all out of it,” sniffed one understandably exasperated person.

And then Wednesday: an image featuring a giant barrel of IHOP syrup and a message to Bud Light’s Twitter, suggesting that it has something to do with delivery. (Bud Light had said something about delivery in response to a tweet from DiGiorno Pizza begging, “It better not be pizza.”)

OK, so I guess the big reveal will be about delivery … maybe of pancakes … maybe of pizza?

And maybe it’s really just time to move on from this silliness.

P is for paying attention, which is what we are not doing anymore.

Photo: iStock

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