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

But a declining number of diners are visiting the restaurant these days, and it is reducing half of its British restaurants after being acquired following financial trouble for the second time this calendar year.

It was common to visit Pizza Hut when I was a child,” explains one London shopper. “It was like a family thing, you'd go on a Sunday – spend the whole day there.” But now, in her mid-twenties, she comments “it's fallen out of favor.”

For young customer Martina, certain features Pizza Hut has been known and loved for since it started in the UK in the seventies are now outdated.

“How they do their buffet and their salad bar, it feels like they are cutting corners and have inferior offerings... They're giving away so much food and you're like ‘How?’”

Since grocery costs have soared, Pizza Hut's unlimited dining format has become quite costly to operate. As have its locations, which are being cut from 132 to 64.

The business, similar to other firms, has also faced its operating costs increase. Earlier this year, staffing costs rose due to increases in the legal wage floor and an rise in employer social security payments.

Two diners mention they frequently dined at Pizza Hut for a date “from time to time”, but now they order in Domino's and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

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

Although Pizza Hut does offer takeaway and deliveries through delivery platforms, it is falling behind to major competitors which solely cater to the delivery sector.

“Domino's has taken over the takeaway pizza sector thanks to intensive advertising and constantly running deals that make customers feel like they're saving money, when in reality the standard rates are quite high,” explains the specialist.

But for the couple it is worth it to get their date night brought to their home.

“We predominantly have meals at home now instead of we eat out,” says the female customer, matching latest data that show a decline in people visiting casual and fast-food restaurants.

During the summer months, quick-service eateries saw a 6% drop in customers compared to the year before.

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

Will Hawkley, global lead for leisure at an advisory group, notes that not only have supermarkets been providing premium ready-to-bake pizzas for quite a while – some are even selling countertop ovens.

“Evolving preferences are also contributing in the success of quick-service brands,” states the expert.

The growing trend of protein-rich eating plans has increased sales at grilled chicken brands, while hitting sales of dough-based meals, he notes.

Since people go out to eat not as often, they may seek out a more premium experience, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with comfortable booths and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more old-fashioned than premium.

The “explosion of high-quality pizzerias” over the last 10 to 15 years, for example boutique chains, has “completely altered the consumer view of what excellent pie is,” notes the industry commentator.

“A light, fresh, easy-to-digest product with a carefully curated additions, not the excessively rich, thick and crowded pizzas of the past. This, in my view, is what's caused Pizza Hut's decline,” she says.

“What person would spend a high price on a tiny, mediocre, unsatisfying pizza from a franchise when you can get a beautiful, masterfully-made classic pizza for under a tenner at one of the many authentic Italian pizzerias around the country?

“The decision is simple.”

A mobile pizza vendor, who operates Smokey Deez based in a regional area explains: “It's not that fallen out of love with pizza – they just want higher quality at a fair price.”

Dan says his adaptable business can offer gourmet pizza at reasonable rates, and that Pizza Hut struggled because it could not keep up with changing preferences.

At an independent chain in a UK location, the founder says the sector is diversifying but Pizza Hut has neglected to introduce anything new.

“You now have by-the-slice options, regional varieties, thin crust, sourdough, Neapolitan, deep-dish – it's a heavenly minefield for a pizza enthusiast to discover.”

Jack says Pizza Hut “should transform” as newer generations don't have any sense of nostalgia or allegiance to the company.

Gradually, Pizza Hut's market has been divided and allocated to its fresher, faster alternatives. To sustain its high labor and location costs, it would have to increase costs – which industry analysts say is tough at a time when family finances are shrinking.

The leadership of Pizza Hut's overseas branches said the rescue aimed “to protect our dining experience and retain staff where possible”.

He said its first focus was to keep running at the surviving locations and off-premise points and to support colleagues through the restructure.

But with so much money going into operating its locations, it probably cannot to allocate significant resources in its off-premise division because the sector is “complex and using existing third-party platforms comes at a expense”, analysts say.

However, it's noted, cutting its costs by leaving crowded locations could be a good way to evolve.