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Once, the popular pizza chain was the top choice for groups and loved ones to feast on its eat-as-much-as-you-like offering, unlimited salad bar, and self-serve ice-cream.

However a declining number of customers are choosing the chain nowadays, and it is shutting down half of its UK locations after being rescued from insolvency for the second instance this calendar year.

It was common to visit Pizza Hut when I was a child,” explains Prudence. “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 no longer popular.”

According to a diner in her twenties, the very elements Pizza Hut has been recognized for since it started in the UK in the seventies are now outdated.

“How they do their all-you-can-eat and their salad station, it appears that they are cheapening on their quality and have inferior offerings... They offer so much food and you're like ‘How?’”

Because food prices have soared, Pizza Hut's buffet-style service has become very expensive to operate. As have its restaurants, which are being reduced from a large number to 64.

The chain, in common with competitors, has also faced its operating costs increase. In April this year, labor expenses increased due to higher minimum pay and an increase in employer taxes.

A couple in their thirties and twenties mention they used to go at Pizza Hut for a date “occasionally”, but now they choose a rival chain and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

Based on your selection, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are close, notes an industry analyst.

Even though Pizza Hut does offer takeaway and deliveries through third-party apps, it is missing out to major competitors which specialize to the delivery sector.

“Another pizza company has managed to dominate the takeaway pizza sector thanks to aggressive marketing and constantly running deals that make customers feel like they're saving money, when in reality the standard rates are quite high,” says the expert.

Yet for the couple it is acceptable to get their date night delivered to their door.

“We absolutely dine at home now instead of we eat out,” says the female customer, reflecting latest data that show a decrease in people frequenting casual and fast-food restaurants.

Over the summer, informal dining venues saw a notable decrease in patrons compared to the year before.

Moreover, one more competitor to ordered-in pies: the cook-at-home oven pizza.

Will Hawkley, global lead for leisure at an advisory group, notes that not only have supermarkets been offering premium ready-to-bake pizzas for quite a while – some are even promoting pizza-making appliances.

“Lifestyle changes are also playing a factor in the performance of quick-service brands,” says Mr. Hawkley.

The growing trend of high protein diets has increased sales at chicken shops, while reducing sales of carb-heavy pizza, he continues.

Because people visit restaurants more rarely, they may seek out a more premium experience, and Pizza Hut's classic look with comfortable booths and nostalgic table settings can feel more retro than upmarket.

The rise of premium pizza outlets” over the last 10 to 15 years, for example popular brands, has “completely altered the consumer view of what good pizza is,” explains the culinary analyst.

“A thin, flavorful, gentle crust with a carefully curated additions, not the massively greasy, heavy and overloaded pizzas of the past. This, in my view, is what's led to Pizza Hut's decline,” she states.

“Why would anyone spend nearly eighteen pounds on a tiny, mediocre, unsatisfying pizza from a chain when you can get a stunning, expertly crafted classic pizza for less than ten pounds at one of the many real Italian restaurants around the country?

“It's an easy choice.”

An independent operator, 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 flexible operation can offer high-quality pie at reasonable rates, and that Pizza Hut had difficulty because it failed to adapt with changing preferences.

From the perspective of Pizzarova in a UK location, the founder says the industry is broadening but Pizza Hut has failed to offer anything new.

“There are now by-the-slice options, London pizza, thin crust, fermented dough, traditional Italian, Detroit – it's a heavenly minefield for a pizza-loving consumer to explore.”

He says Pizza Hut “needs to reinvent itself” as the youth don't have any fond memories or loyalty to the company.

Over time, Pizza Hut's market has been divided and allocated to its fresher, faster alternatives. To maintain its high labor and location costs, it would have to charge more – which industry analysts say is tough at a time when family finances are shrinking.

The leadership of Pizza Hut's overseas branches said the rescue aimed “to protect our guest experience and retain staff where possible”.

The executive stated its immediate priority was to continue operating at the open outlets and delivery sites and to help employees through the transition.

However with significant funds going into maintaining its outlets, it may be unable to spend heavily in its off-premise division because the market is “difficult and partnering with existing external services comes at a expense”, analysts say.

Still, experts suggest, lowering overhead by leaving oversaturated towns and city centres could be a effective strategy to evolve.