I know what you’re thinking: IHOP? Really? While I enjoy reviewing local places that I may or may not have been to, I think it would benefit to review chain-restaurants, as well. Not only that, but breakfast places. Also, there’s so much on IHOP’s menu that I’ve never tried before, so I thought this would be a great opportunity. Usually, I get their buttermilk pancakes, two basted eggs, two pieces of bacon, and a coffee. Sometimes, I’ll be adventurous and have sausage instead of bacon.

Honestly, IHOP is not my favorite breakfast place. I’ve always considered it average in service, taste, and environment. I would even venture to say Denny’s and Bob Evans are better restaurants. Granted, each IHOP is different. The IHOP that I went to this time was in Decatur, next to KFC.

It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, perfect for a sit-down breakfast. The waitress was kind and patient, despite my indecisive rambling. She brought a carafe of hot coffee and asked what I wanted. The only problem was that there were too many choices. Did I want the Californian Scramble, the Tuscan Scramble, or the French Toast Combo? More importantly, what kind of french toast did I want? Original, Stuffed, or Strawberry Banana?

I ended up ordering the Strawberry Banana French Toast Combo with a side of hash browns, two basted eggs, and two sausage links. As I waited for the food, I drank the coffee and remembered that IHOP’s coffee isn’t that great. I tried to put more hot coffee on top of the luke warm coffee in my mug and it didn’t really change the blandness.

When the food came out, I was so excited. IHOP’s cooks always know how to make their plates look like art. On one plate, a pile of hash browns was the centerpiece, with a sausage link on either side of it and two basted eggs on the other side. On the other plate were four slices of decadent french toast covered in bananas, strawberries, strawberry glaze, and a generous dollop of whipped cream.

I ate the hash browns, eggs, and sausage first and they were decent. I thought that the eggs weren’t cooked completely, which was kind of gross. Then, I took a bite of the french toast. At first, I was delighted by the syrupy strawberry glaze and the fluffiness of it. Unfortunately, after a couple more bites, I was all too aware of the taste of burnt eggs. The french toast was too egg-y and I could actually see burnt egg that had dripped off of the bread.

Needless to say, I didn’t care too much for my meal at IHOP. In fact, I didn’t even finish it. And, what makes this IHOP different from the one I go to back home is that there weren’t any pillow mints at the register. I always thought of that as something special that IHOP was known for.

Overall, the service, ambiance, sausage, and hash browns were decent. But, the coffee, eggs, and the main part of the meal, the Strawberry Banana French Toast, were disappointing. I’m giving IHOP a 6/10.