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Once, Pizza Hut was the favorite for families and friends to enjoy its all-you-can-eat buffet, unlimited salad bar, and ice cream with toppings.

Yet not as many diners are frequenting the chain currently, and it is shutting down 50% of its UK outlets after being rescued from insolvency for the second time this year.

I remember going Pizza Hut when I was a child,” notes Prudence. “It was a tradition, you'd go on a Sunday – make a day of it.” But now, as a young adult, she states “it's fallen out of favor.”

In the view of a diner in her twenties, the very elements Pizza Hut has been known and loved for since it launched in the UK in the mid-20th century are now less appealing.

“The way they do their buffet and their salad bar, it feels like they are cutting corners and have inferior offerings... They provide so much food and you're like ‘How is that possible?’”

As grocery costs have soared, Pizza Hut's buffet-style service has become very expensive to maintain. The same goes for its locations, which are being reduced from a large number to just over 60.

The company, similar to other firms, has also faced its expenses rise. This spring, staffing costs rose due to rises in minimum wages and an higher rate of employer social security payments.

Chris, 36, and Joanne, 29 mention they would often visit at Pizza Hut for a date “occasionally”, but now they get delivery from a rival chain and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

According to your order, Pizza Hut and Domino's costs are close, explains an industry analyst.

Even though Pizza Hut provides takeaway and deliveries through third-party apps, it is falling behind to major competitors which specialize to the delivery sector.

“Domino's has taken over the takeaway pizza sector thanks to aggressive marketing and frequent offers that make consumers feel like they're saving money, when in reality the base costs are quite high,” notes the expert.

But for Chris and Joanne it is justified to get their evening together delivered to their door.

“We absolutely dine at home now instead of we eat out,” says Joanne, matching current figures that show a decrease in people frequenting casual and fast-food restaurants.

In the warmer season, casual and fast-food restaurants saw a 6% drop in diners compared to the year before.

There is also another rival to ordered-in pies: the frozen or fresh pizza.

An industry leader, head of leisure and hospitality at an advisory group, explains that not only have grocery stores been offering high-quality prepared pies for a long time – some are even offering countertop ovens.

“Shifts in habits are also having an impact in the performance of casual eateries,” states the expert.

The increased interest of protein-rich eating plans has driven sales at poultry outlets, while reducing sales of high-carbohydrate options, he notes.

Since people visit restaurants not as often, they may prefer a more premium experience, and Pizza Hut's retro theme with vinyl benches and nostalgic table settings can feel more dated than upmarket.

The “explosion of high-quality pizzerias” over the last decade and a half, for example new entrants, has “fundamentally changed the consumer view of what good pizza is,” explains the food expert.

“A crisp, airy, digestible pizza with a few choice toppings, not the massively greasy, heavy and overloaded pizzas of the past. That, I think, is what's caused Pizza Hut's struggles,” she states.

“What person would spend a high price on a small, substandard, disappointing pizza from a franchise when you can get a beautiful, masterfully-made classic pizza for under a tenner at one of the many real Italian restaurants around the country?

“The decision is simple.”

An independent operator, who operates a pizza van based in Suffolk comments: “People haven’t stopped liking pizza – they just want improved value.”

He says his adaptable business can offer high-quality pie at reasonable rates, and that Pizza Hut faced challenges because it could not keep up with changing preferences.

At a small pizza brand in Bristol, the founder says the sector is diversifying but Pizza Hut has not provided anything fresh.

“Currently available are slice concepts, artisanal styles, new haven, artisan base, traditional Italian, rectangular – it's a heavenly minefield for a pizza-loving consumer to discover.”

The owner says Pizza Hut “needs to reinvent itself” as younger people don't have any fond memories or allegiance to the brand.

In recent years, Pizza Hut's market has been sliced up and allocated to its fresher, faster rivals. To sustain its expensive staffing and restaurants, it would have to increase costs – which experts say is tough at a time when personal spending are shrinking.

The managing director of Pizza Hut's overseas branches said the buyout aimed “to safeguard our guest experience and retain staff where possible”.

He said its first focus was to maintain service at the open outlets and takeaway hubs and to assist staff through the restructure.

However with large sums going into operating its locations, it probably cannot to invest too much in its takeaway operation because the sector is “difficult and using existing third-party platforms comes at a price”, commentators say.

But, he adds, lowering overhead by withdrawing from competitive urban areas could be a good way to adapt.