Shocking! IHOP admits it faked IHOb name change

IHOP is serving up the truth about its IHOb name change.

The pancake chain has acknowledged that last month's name change was just a publicity stunt to promote its hamburger menu.

The company best known for its breakfasts already had burgers on the menu but had started using the IHOb name on social media, its website and for in-store promotions to draw attention to a new line of burgers made of Black Angus ground beef.

The name change sparked a social media furor, even though IHOP appeared to be hedging its bets by saying the new IHOb name was "for the time being." Some fans called the name change "bizarre" and "a nightmare." Still, IHOb's bigger goal appears to have been achieved: The name change got consumers talking about the brand.

On Monday, it was back on social media, this time to promote a pancake deal tied to IHOP's 60th birthday.

On Twitter, the company said, "That's right, IHOP! We'd never turn our back on pancakes (except for that time we faked it to promote our new burgers)."

IHOb attracted a few burns from another restaurant chain. Wendy's, which is known for its humorous and slightly snarky Twitter account, said it wasn't too worried about the competition: "Not really afraid of the burgers from a place that decided pancakes were too hard."

Wendy's took another swing at IHOP after it disclosed the IHOb name was a marketing gimmick. A Twitter user asked Wendy's to weigh in, saying, "IHOb was a joke!"

Wendy's replied, "Of course it was."