Searching the world for original Pizza Hut buildings – one photographer hits the huts

I always think fondly of Pizza Hut as a haven for kids of divorced parents (thanks for the dinners, dad) and the place where my cousin had so many ice cream factory refills she threw up. But there’s more to the cheese-covered chain than just stuffed crusts and sprinkles: it has a rich architectural heritage, sort of, in that the original buildings were shaped like the hut of their branding. Photographer Ho Hai Tran has taken Pizza Hut passion to great lengths, travelling the world to seek out and photograph the “original ‘hut’ style buildings that were erected in their thousands in the 70s, 80s and 90s.”

“Only a handful of them are left and they now have second lives as grocery stores, pawnshops, gospel churches, liquor stores and funeral homes, among other things,” the photographer explains. “Since capturing my first hut I have travelled over 14,000kms between Australia, New Zealand and the USA in pursuit of them all. To date I have captured nearly 100 huts. Although most have been repurposed, refurbished or relocated, the buildings are still readily recognisable and, for many who dined at Pizza Hut and call to mind a time of dine-in fast food and self-serve sundaes.”

The images have been drawn together to form the superbly titled tome Pizza Hunt , which you can have a look at and support on Kickstarter here.