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At one time, the popular pizza chain was the favorite for groups and loved ones to indulge in its all-you-can-eat buffet, endless salad selection, and ice cream with toppings.

Yet fewer patrons are visiting the restaurant nowadays, and it is closing a significant portion of its UK outlets after being bought out of administration for the second instance this year.

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

In the view of 23-year-old Martina, certain features Pizza Hut has been famous for since it started in the UK in the seventies are now not-so-hot.

“The way they do their buffet and their salad bar, it seems as if they are lowering standards and have reduced quality... They offer so much food and you're like ‘How is that possible?’”

Because food prices have soared, Pizza Hut's all-you-can-eat model has become quite costly to maintain. Similarly, its restaurants, which are being cut from 132 to 64.

The company, in common with competitors, has also experienced its costs go up. This spring, employee wages increased due to higher minimum pay and an increase in employer taxes.

Two diners say they used to go at Pizza Hut for a date “from time to time”, but now they choose Domino's and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

According to your selection, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are comparable, explains a food expert.

Even though Pizza Hut provides pickup and delivery through external services, it is missing out to larger chains which focus exclusively to off-premise dining.

“Another pizza company has succeeded in leading the takeaway pizza sector thanks to aggressive marketing and constantly running deals that make shoppers feel like they're getting a bargain, when in reality the original prices are on the higher side,” notes the analyst.

But for these customers it is justified to get their special meal sent directly.

“We definitely eat at home now rather than we eat out,” says the female customer, matching latest data that show a drop in people visiting informal dining spots.

In the warmer season, quick-service eateries saw a notable decrease in diners compared to the year before.

Moreover, one more competitor to ordered-in pies: the supermarket pizza.

An industry leader, global lead for leisure at an advisory group, points out that not only have grocery stores been providing high-quality oven-ready pizzas for quite a while – some are even selling home-pizza ovens.

“Lifestyle changes are also playing a factor in the performance of fast-food chains,” states the analyst.

The growing trend of low-carb regimens has driven sales at grilled chicken brands, while hitting sales of dough-based meals, he notes.

Because people dine out not as often, they may seek out a more premium experience, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with vinyl benches and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more old-fashioned than luxurious.

The rise of artisanal pizza places” over the last 10 to 15 years, for example boutique chains, has “dramatically shifted the consumer view of what quality pizza is,” says the culinary analyst.

“A crisp, airy, digestible pizza with a carefully curated additions, 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 chain when you can get a gorgeous, skillfully prepared traditional pie for under a tenner at one of the many authentic Italian pizzerias around the country?

“The decision is simple.”

An independent operator, who runs Smokey Deez based in a regional area says: “It's not that fallen out of love with pizza – they just want better pizza for their money.”

Dan says his flexible operation can offer premium pizza at affordable costs, and that Pizza Hut struggled because it could not keep up with evolving tastes.

At Pizzarova in a UK location, owner Jack Lander says the sector is broadening but Pizza Hut has not provided anything innovative.

“Currently available are slice concepts, regional varieties, new haven, artisan base, wood-fired, rectangular – it's a delightful challenge 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 brand.

In recent years, Pizza Hut's customer base has been sliced up and distributed to its fresher, faster competitors. To sustain its costly operations, it would have to increase costs – which commentators say is challenging at a time when personal spending are tightening.

A senior executive of Pizza Hut's overseas branches said the acquisition aimed “to ensure our customer service and retain staff where possible”.

He said its first focus was to maintain service at the remaining 64 restaurants and takeaway hubs and to assist staff through the change.

However with large sums going into running its restaurants, it may be unable to invest too much in its off-premise division because the sector is “complex and partnering with existing delivery apps comes at a price”, commentators say.

Still, experts suggest, lowering overhead by withdrawing from competitive urban areas could be a effective strategy to adjust.