IHOP’s Pumpkin Spice & Scary Face Pancakes Are Back, Just In Time For Fall

Is there any season busier than fall for families? Whether you're cramming everyone in the car for weekend trips to the pumpkin patch, shuttling kids between school and afterschool activities, or planning out Halloween costumes, it can be hard to stop and enjoy the season. And dragging yourself out of bed early to whip up a towering stack of fall-flavored pancakes to fuel the fam's autumnal adventures? Please. Enter IHOP with the return of pumpkin spice pancakes and the kid-friendly scary face pancakes.

The famed breakfast food chain actually serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, making it the perfect place to grab a bite between your errands. Plus, it's kid-approved, as the restaurant's seasonal menu always illustrates. Remember their Grinch-themed specials? How about the Elf on the Shelf promo? They’ve always got edible fun for the family in mind when it comes to creating special menu items. This fall, that means IHOP has two delicious autumnal treats to choose from.

First up: scary face pancakes... or, basically, your child's Halloween dream come true. Served with sides of candy corn, mini Oreo cookies, and glazed strawberries, the seven-inch buttermilk scary face pancake comes to the table with a whipped cream smile. From there, your kids — or you — can go wild decorating the pancake as spookily or adorably as you wish. After a long day of school and work (or, let's be real, refereeing your kids' constant squabbling), the scary face pancake truly is the perfect seasonal pick-me-up. Big bonus? It just so happens to be one that requires minimal effort on your part. Granted, you’ll have to deal with the inevitable sugar crash that comes from your kid’s scary face pancake having a candy corn beard, but it’s a small price to pay.

The second brings everyone's favorite fall flavor to the table in the form of pumpkin spice pancakes, which are made with real pumpkin and a blend of warm spices — sure to be a hit with adults, teens, tweens, and any little one who can’t get enough of pumpkin pie. Like their spooky scary face counterpart, the pumpkin spice pancakes arrive with whipped cream, but their fall-flavored punch comes from the winning combo of spices and pumpkin instead of candy. (Even Goldfish is getting in on the pumpkin spice game this year!)

The best part of all is IHOP is making all of their combo meals easy to personalize — including their fall items — which is a win for picky eaters everywhere. The new Choice Menu allows customers to mix and match meats, pancakes, French toast, crepes, and eggs. Check out a few of the suggested combo ideas below:

• Build Your Own Griddle Combos: Choose pancakes, crepes, French toast, or a waffle, plus two eggs done your way and your choice of bacon or sausage.
• Pumpkin Spice Pancake Combos: Add two eggs done your way with golden hash browns, or two strips of bacon or sausage with two eggs and hash browns. Make it a bacon and eggs combo with four slices of bacon and two eggs, or try the ultimate bacon and sausage combo, which includes three strips of bacon, three sausage links, two eggs done your way, and hash browns.
• Pancake Pop Popsicles: Make a bunch of mini pancakes, fold them into a ball, and keep them in shape using a stick. Dip it in chocolate, syrup, or marshmallow fluff, and then top it with chocolate chips, fruity jam, cut-up fruits, or your kid's favorite cereal. It's a great snack to take on the go and a fun treat your little one will appreciate.

If you find yourself craving an autumnal activity whole family can enjoy that doesn’t involve a lot of planning or effort, IHOP has your back this fall (and a plate of pumpkin spice pancakes with your name on them).