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In the past, the popular pizza chain was the top choice for parents and children to feast on its all-you-can-eat buffet, unlimited salad bar, and ice cream with toppings.

However a declining number of customers are choosing the chain currently, and it is shutting down a significant portion of its UK locations after being bought out of administration for the second occasion this calendar year.

It was common to visit Pizza Hut when I was a child,” notes one London shopper. “It was like a family thing, you'd go on a Sunday – spend the whole day there.” However, at present, aged 24, she states “it's fallen out of favor.”

In the view of a diner in her twenties, some of the very things Pizza Hut has been famous for since it launched in the UK in the seventies are now outdated.

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

Since ingredient expenses have risen sharply, Pizza Hut's buffet-style service has become very expensive to maintain. As have its restaurants, which are being sliced from 132 to just over 60.

The chain, similar to other firms, has also experienced its operating costs increase. This spring, employee wages jumped due to increases in the legal wage floor and an higher rate of employer social security payments.

Two diners explain they frequently dined at Pizza Hut for a date “occasionally”, but now they get delivery from Domino's and think Pizza Hut is “too expensive”.

Based on your choices, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are similar, says a culinary author.

While Pizza Hut does offer takeaway and deliveries through delivery platforms, it is missing out to big rivals which focus exclusively to the delivery sector.

“Another pizza company has taken over the off-premise pizza industry thanks to strong promotions and ongoing discounts that make customers feel like they're finding a good deal, when in reality the original prices are quite high,” explains the expert.

However for the couple it is worth it to get their special meal delivered to their door.

“We predominantly have meals at home now more than we eat out,” says Joanne, matching recent statistics that show a decrease in people going to casual and fast-food restaurants.

Over the summer, informal dining venues saw a 6% drop in diners compared to last summer.

Additionally, another rival to pizza from eateries: the cook-at-home oven pizza.

An industry leader, head of leisure and hospitality at a leading firm, notes that not only have supermarkets been providing good-standard prepared pies for a long time – some are even selling countertop ovens.

“Evolving preferences are also having an impact in the popularity of fast-food chains,” states Mr. Hawkley.

The growing trend of low-carb regimens has boosted sales at poultry outlets, while reducing sales of dough-based meals, he adds.

Since people visit restaurants less frequently, they may seek out a more high-quality meal, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with booth seating and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more retro than upmarket.

The rise of premium pizza outlets” over the last decade and a half, including popular brands, has “completely altered the public's perception of what quality pizza is,” notes the food expert.

“A light, fresh, easy-to-digest product with a select ingredients, not the excessively rich, thick and crowded pizzas of the past. That, I think, is what's resulted in Pizza Hut's decline,” she says.

“Who would choose to spend £17.99 on a tiny, mediocre, unsatisfying pizza from a large brand when you can get a gorgeous, skillfully prepared traditional pie for under a tenner at one of the many traditional pizzerias around the country?

“It's an easy choice.”

Dan Puddle, who runs a pizza van based in a county in England says: “The issue isn’t that fallen out of love with pizza – they just want higher quality at a fair price.”

Dan says his flexible operation can offer high-quality pie at reasonable rates, and that Pizza Hut struggled because it was unable to evolve with evolving tastes.

At an independent chain in a UK location, the founder says the industry is broadening but Pizza Hut has not provided anything innovative.

“There are now slice concepts, artisanal styles, New Haven-style, artisan base, traditional Italian, deep-dish – it's a heavenly minefield for a pie fan to try.”

The owner says Pizza Hut “should transform” as the youth don't have any fond memories or allegiance to the company.

Over time, Pizza Hut's market has been fragmented and allocated to its trendier, more nimble alternatives. To sustain its costly operations, it would have to raise prices – which experts say is challenging at a time when family finances are tightening.

A senior executive of Pizza Hut's global operations said the acquisition aimed “to safeguard our guest experience and protect jobs where possible”.

It was explained its first focus was to maintain service at the open outlets and takeaway hubs and to help employees through the change.

Yet with significant funds going into operating its locations, it probably cannot to allocate significant resources in its delivery service because the industry is “complex and using existing delivery apps comes at a expense”, commentators say.

However, it's noted, cutting its costs by exiting crowded locations could be a smart move to adjust.