News Release

IHOP Brings Viral PEPSI® Maple Syrup Cola to Restaurants Nationwide, Among Assortment of Menu Innovations This Spring

April 1, 2024

The Brand is Introducing Craveable Flavors Across Categories and Dayparts, Including First-Ever Pancake-Inspired Milkshakes, April’s Pancake of the Month, and a New Sonic the Hedgehog Partnership with Exclusive Prizes for Loyalty Members

PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 1, 2024-- Today, IHOP® announced it is bringing more smiles to more plates this spring with innovative new menu offerings, including the reintroduction of Pepsi® Maple Syrup Cola, exclusively in participating restaurants nationwide. The brand will also expand its iconic menu with craveable flavors perfect for guests to enjoy any time of day, as well as fun spins on classic favorites, like the new Cinn-A-Stack and Cupcake House-Made Milkshakes inspired by IHOP’s most popular pancake flavors, Kids French Toast Sticks, Chicken Sandwiches, and Silk® Oatmeal Cookie Oat Creamer for the first time ever.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240401702534/en/

IHOP Brings Viral PEPSI® Maple Syrup Cola to Restaurants Nationwide (Photo: Business Wire)

IHOP Brings Viral PEPSI® Maple Syrup Cola to Restaurants Nationwide (Photo: Business Wire)

“As the leader in breakfast, we are continually innovating and expanding our menu to ensure we are introducing menu items our guests want, including the introduction of fun and exciting new beverage options like Pepsi® Maple Syrup Cola,” said Chef Art Carl, Vice President of Culinary at IHOP. “We also remain committed to providing options that satisfy cravings during all dayparts. We take pride in the ways we innovate across the breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late night categories that allow guests to enjoy IHOP when they want it, and how they want it.”

In partnership with IHOP, in March 2022, Pepsi® celebrated pancake lovers everywhere with a new, limited-edition flavor, Pepsi® Maple Syrup Cola. Only 2,000 lucky individuals were able to get their hands on the flavor. Now, IHOP and Pepsi® are bringing the indulgent taste of Pepsi® Maple Syrup Cola to the masses; starting April 1, the limited-time only flavor will be available in participating IHOP restaurants nationwide!

  • Pepsi® Maple Syrup Cola and Float: A perfect blend of maple syrup-flavored indulgence with the crisp, refreshing caramel notes of Pepsi®. Also available as a float with vanilla ice cream!

Additionally, IHOP is giving guests a whole new reason to smile about pancakes with its Pancake of the Month offering. Started on February 1, 2024, and following on the first of every month, a new flavor is available as a full stack, side, or part of a pancake combo for the calendar month. April’s Pancake of the Month flavor is Cinnamon Apple Pecan.

  • Cinnamon Apple Pecan Pancakes: Four buttermilk pancakes topped with cinnamon apples, dulce de leche sauce, pecans & whipped topping. Reminds us of home-cooked apple pie!

IHOP’s new sweet and savory core menu additions include two Classic Chicken Sandwiches – grilled & crispy – two House-Made Milkshakes, a Watermelon Splasher, and French Toast Sticks served all day for kids 12 and under. Each item was crafted by the brand’s culinary and beverage teams with quality, choice, and value top of mind.

  • Classic Chicken Sandwich: Grilled or crispy chicken breast with bacon, lettuce, tomato, four-cheese blend, avocado & buttermilk ranch on a grilled roll
  • Kids French Toast Sticks: Sliced French toast with a side of fresh strawberries, banana & chocolate dipping sauce. For kids 12 & under.
  • Watermelon Splasher: A blend of lemonade, lemon-lime soda & watermelon syrup. Topped with fresh blueberries & watermelon
  • House-Made Milkshakes: IHOP is leveraging two of its favorite pancake flavors to create new Cinn-A-Stack and Cupcake Milkshakes
  • Silk® Oatmeal Cookie Oat Creamer

Lastly, IHOP is partnering with SEGA® to celebrate Sonic the Hedgehog, in which loyalty members can earn PanCoins to redeem for Sonic the Hedgehog content. Included in IHOP’s Stack Market is an exclusive DLC Amy outfit for SEGA’s latest game reimagining 2D classic Sonic platforming, Sonic Superstars™, as well as full game download codes for Sonic Superstars, Sonic Frontiers™, and Sonic Origins Plus. IHOP will also feature limited-edition Sonic the Hedgehog gift cards online and at select restaurants through May 5, 2024. Guests can head to their local IHOP restaurant and try a Sonic-inspired menu of six different items.

  • Sonic’s Blue Blur Special: Four buttermilk pancakes with double the blueberries for double the speed! Ask to try them with blueberry syrup
  • Knuckles’ Chicken Sandwich: A crispy chicken sandwich with bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado, cheese, & buttermilk ranch that won’t leave you hangry. Order with a side of “gold” onion rings
  • Tails’ 2x2x2: Two eggs, two pancakes, two bacon strips or two sausage links – just like Tails, everything good comes in twos
  • Shadow’s Chaos Chocolate Pancakes: Go ahead and be a little chaotic – a four-stack filled with chocolate chips is the ultimate pancake experience
  • Amy’s Sweet Strawberry Delight: Vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and fresh strawberries atop a golden-brown waffle quarter is a perfectly sweet dessert for an epic adventure. Ask to try with strawberry syrup
  • Dr. Eggman’s Benedict: A 300 IQ genius like Eggman knows that black forest ham, poached eggs, & creamy hollandaise sauce makes for a superior meal

Sonic Superstars is now available both digitally and physically on PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and the Nintendo Switch™ family of systems, as well as digitally on PC.

For more information on IHOP’s latest menu innovations or to find the nearest restaurant, please visit IHOP.com.

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF PANCAKES, LLC

For more than 65 years, IHOP has been a leader, innovator and expert in all things breakfast, lunch and dinner. The chain offers 65 different signature, fresh, made-to-order breakfast options, a wide selection of popular lunch and dinner items, including Ultimate Steakburgers, Hand Crafted Melts, Burritos & Bowls and more. IHOP restaurants offer guests an affordable, everyday dining experience with warm and friendly service. As of September 30, 2023, there are 1,794 IHOP restaurants around the world, including restaurants in all 50 states, two U.S. territories and 13 countries outside the United States. IHOP restaurants are franchised by affiliates of Pasadena, Calif.-based Dine Brands Global, Inc. (NYSE: DIN).

ABOUT PEPSICO

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $91 billion in net revenue in 2023, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo’s product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with pep+ (PepsiCo Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com, and follow on X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.

ABOUT SEGA OF AMERICA, INC.

Sega of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA CORPORATION, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment. Established in 1986, Sega of America publishes innovative interactive entertainment experiences for console, PC, mobile and emerging platforms. In 2020, SEGA ranked #1 among Metacritic's Annual Game Publisher Rankings. Its globally beloved franchises include Sonic the Hedgehog, Like a Dragon™, Virtua Fighter™, Super Monkey Ball™, and Phantasy Star Online™, along with Atlus' Persona™ and Shin Megami Tensei™ series. Since its debut more than three decades ago, Sonic has become a pop culture icon featured in dozens of games, TV series, and movies. Sega of America has offices in Irvine and Burbank, California. Visit www.sega.com.

©SEGA. All rights reserved. SEGA is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. SEGA, the SEGA logo, SONIC SUPERSTARS, SONIC FRONTIERS and SONIC ORIGINS are registered trademarks or trademarks of SEGA CORPORATION. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are property of their respective owners.

BR-IHOP

IHOP Communications
Media@IHOP.com

Abby Hoffman
DeVries Global on behalf of IHOP
Ahoffman@devriesglobal.com

Associate PR Manager
Thalia Piedra
Thalia.Piedra@SegaAmerica.com

Source: International House of Pancakes, LLC