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Once, the popular pizza chain was the favorite for groups and loved ones to feast on its unlimited dining experience, help-yourself greens station, and ice cream with toppings.

But a declining number of patrons are visiting the brand currently, and it is closing half of its UK outlets after being acquired following financial trouble for the second occasion this year.

“We used to go Pizza Hut when I was a child,” notes a young adult. “It was a tradition, you'd go on a Sunday – spend the whole day there.” However, at present, aged 24, she states “it's no longer popular.”

According to young customer Martina, the very elements Pizza Hut has been known and loved for since it opened in the UK in the 1970s are now outdated.

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

Since food prices have soared, Pizza Hut's all-you-can-eat model has become very expensive to maintain. As have its outlets, which are being sliced from over 130 to a smaller figure.

The chain, similar to other firms, has also seen its costs go up. This spring, employee wages rose due to increases in the legal wage floor and an higher rate of employer national insurance contributions.

Chris, 36, and Joanne, 29 explain they frequently dined at Pizza Hut for a date “occasionally”, but now they choose another pizza brand and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

Based on your order, Pizza Hut and Domino's costs are similar, says a food expert.

Although Pizza Hut has takeaway and deliveries through delivery platforms, it is losing out to big rivals which specialize to off-premise dining.

“Another pizza company has managed to dominate the takeaway pizza sector thanks to intensive advertising 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 specialist.

However for the couple it is acceptable to get their evening together brought to their home.

“We predominantly have meals at home now rather than we eat out,” says the female customer, matching current figures that show a drop in people going to 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.

Additionally, a further alternative to restaurant and takeaway pizzas: the cook-at-home oven pizza.

An industry leader, global lead for leisure at an advisory group, notes that not only have retailers been offering high-quality oven-ready pizzas for years – some are even offering pizza-making appliances.

“Evolving preferences are also having an impact in the success of fast-food chains,” states the analyst.

The growing trend of high protein diets has driven sales at poultry outlets, while reducing sales of dough-based meals, he continues.

Since people go out to eat less frequently, they may seek out a more high-quality meal, and Pizza Hut's retro theme with booth seating and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more old-fashioned than luxurious.

The “explosion of artisanal pizza places” over the last decade and a half, for example boutique chains, has “dramatically shifted the consumer view of what good pizza is,” says the culinary analyst.

“A light, fresh, easy-to-digest product with a few choice toppings, not the overly oily, dense and piled-high pizzas of the past. That, arguably, is what's caused Pizza Hut's downfall,” she comments.

“Who would choose to spend a high price on a tiny, mediocre, unsatisfying pizza from a large brand when you can get a beautiful, masterfully-made classic pizza for a lower price at one of the many authentic Italian pizzerias around the country?

“It's a no-brainer.”

Dan Puddle, who runs a pizza van based in a county in England explains: “The issue isn’t that lost interest in pizza – they just want higher quality at a fair price.”

The owner says his flexible operation can offer gourmet pizza at affordable costs, and that Pizza Hut faced challenges because it was unable to evolve with new customer habits.

At a small pizza brand in a city in southwest England, owner Jack Lander says the industry is broadening but Pizza Hut has neglected to introduce anything innovative.

“There are now slice concepts, regional varieties, New Haven-style, sourdough, Neapolitan, rectangular – it's a delightful challenge for a pizza enthusiast to try.”

The owner says Pizza Hut “should transform” as newer generations don't have any emotional connection or attachment to the company.

Over time, Pizza Hut's customer base has been divided and allocated to its trendier, more nimble alternatives. To maintain its costly operations, it would have to raise prices – which commentators 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 ensure our dining experience and protect jobs where possible”.

It was explained its first focus was to keep running at the surviving locations and takeaway hubs and to support colleagues through the transition.

Yet with large sums going into running its restaurants, it may be unable to spend heavily in its off-premise division because the market is “difficult and using existing third-party platforms comes at a price”, experts say.

However, it's noted, cutting its costs by leaving competitive urban areas could be a good way to adjust.