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Once, Pizza Hut was the top choice for parents and children to indulge in its all-you-can-eat buffet, unlimited salad bar, and ice cream with toppings.

However not as many diners are visiting the brand these days, and it is closing 50% of its UK locations after being acquired following financial trouble for the second instance this calendar year.

“We used to go Pizza Hut when I was a child,” explains one London shopper. “It was a regular outing, you'd go on a Sunday – turn it into an event.” Today, as a young adult, she says “it's fallen out of favor.”

For a diner in her twenties, the very elements Pizza Hut has been famous for since it launched in the UK in the seventies are now not-so-hot.

“The manner in which they do their all-you-can-eat and their salad station, it seems as if they are cutting corners and have reduced quality... They offer so much food and you're like ‘How?’”

Because grocery costs have risen sharply, Pizza Hut's buffet-style service has become very expensive to maintain. Similarly, its locations, which are being sliced from a large number to a smaller figure.

The company, similar to other firms, has also experienced its expenses rise. Earlier this year, employee wages rose due to rises in minimum wages and an increase in employer social security payments.

Two diners mention they would often visit at Pizza Hut for a date “from time to time”, but now they choose another pizza brand and think Pizza Hut is “very overpriced”.

Depending on your order, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are comparable, explains a food expert.

While Pizza Hut provides pickup and delivery through delivery platforms, it is missing out to larger chains which focus exclusively to this market.

“The rival chain has succeeded in leading the takeaway pizza sector thanks to aggressive marketing and frequent offers that make consumers feel like they're saving money, when in reality the original prices are on the higher side,” explains the analyst.

Yet for the couple it is acceptable to get their date night brought to their home.

“We absolutely dine at home now rather than we eat out,” explains one of the diners, echoing recent statistics that show a decline in people visiting informal dining spots.

Over the summer, informal dining venues saw a six percent decline in diners compared to the year before.

Additionally, another rival to pizza from eateries: the frozen or fresh pizza.

An industry leader, senior partner at a leading firm, notes that not only have supermarkets been providing high-quality prepared pies for years – some are even promoting countertop ovens.

“Evolving preferences are also playing a factor in the performance of casual eateries,” comments the analyst.

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

Since people visit restaurants more rarely, they may seek out a more upscale outing, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with vinyl benches and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more dated than premium.

The “explosion of high-quality pizzerias” over the last decade and a half, including boutique chains, has “dramatically shifted the general opinion of what quality pizza is,” says the industry commentator.

“A thin, flavorful, gentle crust with a carefully curated additions, 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.

“Who would choose to spend a high price on a small, substandard, disappointing pizza from a chain 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.”

Dan Puddle, who operates a small business based in Suffolk comments: “It's not that lost interest in pizza – they just want better pizza for their money.”

Dan says his flexible operation can offer gourmet pizza at reasonable rates, and that Pizza Hut struggled because it failed to adapt with new customer habits.

From the perspective of an independent chain in a city in southwest England, the founder says the industry is diversifying but Pizza Hut has neglected to introduce anything new.

“Currently available are slice concepts, regional varieties, thin crust, sourdough, Neapolitan, rectangular – it's a wonderful array for a pizza-loving consumer to try.”

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

Gradually, Pizza Hut's share has been fragmented and allocated to its more modern, agile rivals. To maintain its high labor and location costs, it would have to increase costs – which commentators say is tough at a time when household budgets are tightening.

The leadership of Pizza Hut's global operations said the acquisition aimed “to ensure our dining experience and protect jobs where possible”.

It was explained its first focus was to continue operating at the remaining 64 restaurants and delivery sites and to help employees through the change.

But with significant funds going into operating its locations, it probably cannot to invest too much in its delivery service because the sector is “complicated and partnering with existing delivery apps comes at a expense”, analysts say.

However, it's noted, cutting its costs by withdrawing from oversaturated towns and city centres could be a good way to adapt.