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Once, the popular pizza chain was the favorite for families and friends to enjoy its unlimited dining experience, endless salad selection, and make-your-own dessert.

However fewer diners are choosing the restaurant currently, and it is shutting down 50% of its UK restaurants after being rescued from insolvency for the second instance this year.

I remember going Pizza Hut when I was a child,” notes Prudence. “It was a tradition, you'd go on a Sunday – make a day of it.” However, at present, aged 24, she states “it's no longer popular.”

According to young customer Martina, some of the very things Pizza Hut has been known and loved for since it launched in the UK in the mid-20th century are now not-so-hot.

“The manner in which they do their all-you-can-eat and their salad bar, it feels like they are cheapening on their quality and have reduced quality... They're giving away so much food and you're like ‘How can they?’”

Because ingredient expenses have increased significantly, Pizza Hut's all-you-can-eat model has become very expensive to run. The same goes for its restaurants, which are being sliced from over 130 to 64.

The chain, like many others, has also seen its operating costs rise. Earlier this year, labor expenses rose due to increases in the legal wage floor and an rise in employer social security payments.

Chris, 36, and Joanne, 29 say they would often visit at Pizza Hut for a date “every now and then”, but now they choose Domino's and think Pizza Hut is “not good value”.

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

Although Pizza Hut has pickup and delivery through delivery platforms, it is losing out to big rivals which focus exclusively to the delivery sector.

“The rival chain has succeeded in leading the takeaway pizza sector thanks to intensive advertising and constantly running deals that make shoppers feel like they're getting a bargain, when in reality the base costs are on the higher side,” notes the expert.

However for the couple it is acceptable to get their date night delivered to their door.

“We predominantly have meals at home now rather than we eat out,” says the female customer, echoing current figures that show a decline in people going to casual and fast-food restaurants.

In the warmer season, casual and fast-food restaurants saw a 6% drop in customers compared to the year before.

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

A hospitality expert, global lead for leisure at an advisory group, notes that not only have grocery stores been offering premium ready-to-bake pizzas for years – some are even selling countertop ovens.

“Evolving preferences are also playing a factor in the performance of quick-service brands,” states Mr. Hawkley.

The growing trend of protein-rich eating plans has increased sales at chicken shops, while affecting sales of high-carbohydrate options, he adds.

As people visit restaurants not as often, they may seek out a more upscale outing, 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 rise of high-quality pizzerias” over the last several years, such as popular brands, has “fundamentally changed the consumer view of what good pizza is,” explains the food expert.

“A light, fresh, easy-to-digest product with a carefully curated additions, not the excessively rich, thick and crowded pizzas of the past. That, I think, is what's led to Pizza Hut's decline,” she comments.

“Who would choose to spend £17.99 on a modest, low-quality, underwhelming pizza from a franchise when you can get a stunning, expertly crafted traditional pie for less than ten pounds at one of the many real Italian restaurants around the country?

“It's a no-brainer.”

Dan Puddle, who operates a pizza van based in a county in England explains: “The issue isn’t that stopped liking pizza – they just want improved value.”

Dan says his mobile setup can offer gourmet pizza at accessible prices, and that Pizza Hut faced challenges because it failed to adapt with new customer habits.

From the perspective of a small pizza brand in Bristol, the founder says the sector is broadening but Pizza Hut has neglected to introduce anything fresh.

“There are now individual slices, regional varieties, thin crust, fermented dough, wood-fired, deep-dish – it's a delightful challenge for a pizza enthusiast to explore.”

The owner says Pizza Hut “must rebrand” as the youth don't have any sense of nostalgia or allegiance to the chain.

In recent years, Pizza Hut's share has been sliced up and spread to its fresher, faster rivals. To keep up its expensive staffing and restaurants, it would have to increase costs – which experts say is difficult at a time when personal spending are decreasing.

The managing director of Pizza Hut's overseas branches said the rescue aimed “to ensure our guest experience and save employment where possible”.

The executive stated its immediate priority was to keep running at the open outlets and delivery sites and to support colleagues through the transition.

But with so much money going into maintaining its outlets, it likely can't afford to invest too much in its off-premise division because the industry is “complicated and partnering with existing delivery apps comes at a cost”, experts say.

But, he adds, reducing expenses by withdrawing from oversaturated towns and city centres could be a effective strategy to adapt.