Okay, I'll admit it: IHOP @ 4am was nothing like I expected, especially on a Sunday morning. This all started a week or so ago, when Erik the Redneck suggested we rendezvous there, since he'd be en route a 6am task at his employer (system maintenance happens when everyone's off the computers).
So, we arrived to find a very full parking lot and a mostly full interior .. and .. the majority didn't appear drunk! By the time we left, the crowd had vanished and the waitstaff had prepared the tables for a presumed breakfast crowd (which is why they ignored us .. after a quick delivery of our order while the crowd was there, our waiter mostly vanished).
The food was lackluster, too .. in the battle of Denny's vs. IHOP, I award Gene Bob's Golden Pancake Trophy™ to Denny's (without a doubt). Both of them pale in comparison to the non-chain breakfast spots in the area: Bic's; Bagelstein's; Charlie D's and Gilbert's (although none of them are open at 4am, so they're ineligible for the Golden Pancake Trophy).
Deep Thought #41: the pancake syrups included maple syrup, strawberry, blueberry and HOT. Since when is HOT a flavor?
Jill-Bob has forgotten how to blog, so I had to seek info myself on Slowing Down A CAT-astrophe: Keeping Pet Cats Indoors; several years ago, a vet told me that outdoor cats on average live only half as long as indoor ones. Along that vein, an owner of a birdfeed store told me that because domestic cats are a) not native to North America and b) seldom spayed/neutered, their out-of-control population threatens many bird species. Indeed, the article above says that 40 species of birds in New Zealand have become extinct because of their domestic feline overpopulation. Earlier this year, I watched a small cat carry off a newborn mockingbird from its nest in my front yard.
Somewhat related: Operation Noble Foster supports our troops by providing for in home foster placement of their cat(s) while they are called up. Part of that plan allows for spay/neutering, which is very cool.
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As it turned out we hit the almost-local (Valencia CA) IHOP after the water polo matches on Saturday; instead of 4am it was 4PM. Actually got good service though the shift changed while we were there: good fresh coffee, frequent refills of the kids' sodas, and quick food prep. The International Breakfast plate(it WAS our first meal of the day) was good with the swedish-style pancakes and ligonberry jelly. My son got a Rooti-Tutti-Fresh 'n Fruity, and seemed to enjoy it. Their friend got a "Funny Face" (he's 5) and didn't finish it, so we had some - chocolate pancakes!!! pretty good. All-in-all a decent experience - we tend to treat Denny's as a last-resort kind of thing, a la the 4am thing (I noted that IHOP was closed after midnight; on my last visit to Gene-Bob land, three years ago, I was hungry and the IHOP I found (somewhere east and south of Plano, that's all I remember) was 24 hours and the steak-and-eggs was good (but of course the steak wasn't nearly as good as the Salt Grass steakhouse near my hotel on North Dallas Parkway http://www.virtualtourist.com/vt/d6e5d/2/ -good 'ol Google helps my fading memory! I knew it was Salt-something, and in Plano.) So I'd award MY Golden Pancake award to IHOP. I should also note that I have been to the site of the original IHOP in Toluca Lake, CA - there was a plaque in the sidewalk, it was at the time a Hampton's Hamburger joint, reputedly owned by Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward (her burger recipes). Now it's Mo's Bar, supposedly very good; right across the street from the restored/reborn Bob's Big Boy. Sigh. Ramble, ramble....
I'd forgotten a major point: syrups at that IHOP were Original, Strawberry, Boysenberry, and Butter Pecan.
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