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In the past, Pizza Hut was the favorite for parents and children to indulge in its eat-as-much-as-you-like offering, unlimited salad bar, and make-your-own dessert.

However fewer diners are choosing the brand nowadays, and it is closing 50% of its UK restaurants after being acquired following financial trouble for the second time this year.

I remember going Pizza Hut when I was a child,” explains a young adult. “It was a tradition, you'd go on a Sunday – turn it into an event.” However, at present, as a young adult, she states “it's not a thing anymore.”

For 23-year-old Martina, some of the very things Pizza Hut has been famous for since it opened in the UK in the 1970s are now not-so-hot.

“How they do their buffet and their salad bar, it appears that they are lowering standards and have inferior offerings... They offer so much food and you're like ‘How can they?’”

Because ingredient expenses have risen sharply, Pizza Hut's all-you-can-eat model has become increasingly pricey to run. The same goes for its locations, which are being sliced from 132 to a smaller figure.

The chain, in common with competitors, has also seen its costs rise. Earlier this year, staffing costs rose due to increases in the legal wage floor and an increase in employer national insurance contributions.

Two diners say they used to go at Pizza Hut for a date “every now and then”, but now they get delivery from another pizza brand and think Pizza Hut is “very overpriced”.

Based on your selection, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are close, notes a food expert.

Although Pizza Hut provides takeaway and deliveries through delivery platforms, it is losing out to larger chains which focus exclusively to the delivery sector.

“Another pizza company has managed to dominate the takeaway pizza sector thanks to strong promotions and frequent offers that make customers feel like they're getting a bargain, when in reality the standard rates are on the higher side,” notes the specialist.

However for the couple it is acceptable to get their special meal sent directly.

“We predominantly have meals at home now rather than we eat out,” comments one of the diners, echoing recent statistics that show a decrease in people going to casual and fast-food restaurants.

Over the summer, quick-service eateries saw a 6% drop in customers compared to the previous year.

There is also a further alternative to pizza from eateries: the cook-at-home oven pizza.

A hospitality expert, global lead for leisure at a major consultancy, notes that not only have retailers been providing high-quality ready-to-bake pizzas for a long time – some are even selling pizza-making appliances.

“Lifestyle changes are also playing a factor in the success of fast-food chains,” comments the expert.

The growing trend of protein-rich eating plans has boosted sales at chicken shops, while hitting sales of high-carbohydrate options, he notes.

As people go out to eat less frequently, they may prefer a more upscale outing, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with comfortable booths and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more retro than luxurious.

The rise of premium pizza outlets” over the last 10 to 15 years, such as boutique chains, has “fundamentally changed the general opinion of what excellent pie is,” explains the culinary analyst.

“A crisp, airy, digestible pizza with a few choice toppings, not the overly oily, dense and piled-high pizzas of the past. That, I think, is what's resulted in Pizza Hut's struggles,” she states.

“What person would spend a high price on a modest, low-quality, underwhelming pizza from a franchise when you can get a stunning, expertly crafted traditional pie for a lower price at one of the many real Italian restaurants around the country?

“It's an easy choice.”

A mobile pizza vendor, who runs a pizza van based in Suffolk explains: “It's not that lost interest in pizza – they just want better pizza for their money.”

Dan says his mobile setup can offer high-quality pie at affordable costs, and that Pizza Hut struggled because it could not keep up with new customer habits.

At an independent chain in Bristol, the founder says the industry is diversifying but Pizza Hut has not provided anything innovative.

“Currently available are slice concepts, artisanal styles, New Haven-style, sourdough, Neapolitan, rectangular – it's a heavenly minefield for a pizza-loving consumer to discover.”

He says Pizza Hut “must rebrand” as the youth don't have any sense of nostalgia or loyalty to the chain.

Gradually, Pizza Hut's customer base has been fragmented and allocated to its more modern, agile competitors. To keep up its high labor and location costs, it would have to raise prices – which experts say is difficult at a time when family finances are shrinking.

The managing director of Pizza Hut's global operations said the rescue aimed “to ensure our guest experience and save employment where possible”.

The executive stated its immediate priority was to continue operating at the remaining 64 restaurants and delivery sites and to help employees through the change.

Yet with large sums going into maintaining its outlets, it likely can't afford to invest too much in its takeaway operation because the industry is “complex and working with existing external services comes at a cost”, analysts say.

But, he adds, cutting its costs by leaving crowded locations could be a smart move to adjust.