International House of Pancakes or IHOP for short, was founded in 1958 by Al and Jerry Lapin. The first location was in Burbank, California, across the street from what would become the longest standing restaurant.
In 1960, the company begins franchising and in 1961 the company goes public.
In 1973, the acronym IHOP is introduced in their marketing for the first time. 
In 1985, the Rooty Tooty Fresh N’ Fruity is introduced. While the main focus of the company is on breakfast, they also offer lunch, dinner, desserts, and appetizers. The company is open on Thanksgiving day and their traditional menu of turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, and green beans is a popular item. 
In 1992, the 500th IHOP location opens. In 2001, the 1000th IHOP location opens.
In 2007, IHOP’s parent company, DineEquity, successful acquires the Applebee’s chain of restaurants. 
In mid-2018 the company tried an advertising campaign pretending to change their name to IHOB (International House of Burgers) This was merely a gimmick to increase attention to their lunch and burger specials.
In December 2018, the company dropped their advertising campaign from the Tucker Carlson Show after the talk show host went on an anti-immigrant rant.
In August 2021, the company began a trial of serving alcohol at select locations.
Today, IHOP operates over 1650 restaurants in the US, mostly franchises. Company headquarters are located in Glendale, California. In 2006, the company had annual revenue of $349.6 million. 
