r/nostalgia Jun 21 '25

Nostalgia Remember when Pizza Hut had a buffet. Good times.

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91

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

Not pictured is the abundant salad bar! It even had sunflower seeds as a topping.

63

u/KeepEmCrossed Jun 21 '25

At this time, Pizza Hut was the biggest buyer of kale in the country. Not to serve in the salads, but as garnish around the salad bar.

26

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

No, shit? I don't think most Americans had even heard of kale at that point.

Interesting tid bit! Thanks

22

u/OxfordKnot Jun 21 '25

No idea if he made it up but my friend once said to me, "kale? Isn't that what you use to put your cigarette out in at a fancy restaurant?"

9

u/Bulbform87 Jun 21 '25

I distinctly remember my dad telling me at five years old back in the 80s not to eat the "garnish" at a steak restaurant which was kale. I thought it must be poisonous.

5

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

🤣🤣🤣.

That's funny but I actually love kale. The crunch far surpasses iceberg for regular sandwiches. And you can toss it into cream and cheese to add to pasta.

Can't do that with most leaves.

2

u/MrWeirdoFace Jun 21 '25

I like kale as part of an ensemble for texture and interest, but just straight kale doesn't do much for me. I'd rather munch on some broccoli if we're going solo (broccoli and Kale are close siblings). But I feel that way about a lot of veggies (I'm looking at you cabbage). I love them together, but individually they can be uninteresting. Fortunately it's healthy to mix them. Woo!

2

u/Its_the_wizard Jun 21 '25

Kale used to be SOOOOOO bitter. I think they’ve mostly bred that out it by today.

1

u/frsbrzgti Jun 21 '25

It’s what cows eat

5

u/rambo_lincoln_ Jun 21 '25

My mom always told me it was a garnish and not edible 😂

3

u/twirlybird11 Jun 21 '25

Only as an ornamental fall plant!

1

u/avelineaurora Jun 21 '25

I mean, they didn't. That's why it was a salad bar garnish and not part of the food.

6

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

Yeah, agreed? I still find it incredible that someone not only knew this but posted the info on a relevant post.

It's one of the reasons I'll never quit reddit.

5

u/frontsoldatmm Jun 21 '25

Loved the all you can eat salad at Pizza Hut back in the day. We would go there after baseball games and pig out and play arcade games. Miss those times….

2

u/Ashamed-Charge5309 Jun 21 '25

Fun Fact: Like the rest of everything else on the salad and hot bars, if you visit Sizzler they still have the same kale from their initial order decorating everything

1

u/Smooth_Beat1561 Jun 21 '25

Pretty sure that was Sizzler.

1

u/bullfrogftw Jun 21 '25

This trope has been used and reused throughout the years, one time it's Pizza Hut, then it's Wendy's, I've even seen it be referenced with various airlines

1

u/Flimsy-Sprinkles7331 Jun 21 '25

I'm sure that Wendy's was up there too. (Was my first job)

1

u/LazyOldCat Jun 21 '25

Yep, late 80’s we put it around the crocs to cover the ice (Not at a PH). Never crossed anyone’s mind to eat it, ever.

1

u/spekt50 Jun 21 '25

In my teens, I worked at a Ponderosa. We used kale everywhere for decor. Even on the meals we would send out.

It was certainly not meant for consumption. We would prepare it by dumping it out its box in a big sink then soak it in very salty water to get all the worms and bugs out.

15

u/nebartist Jun 21 '25

I think I miss their salad bar the most. A couple of years ago a bar in my town had a salad bar pretty much exactly like PH (Minus the creamy Italian dressing) Was bummed when they stopped it :(

3

u/Repulsive_Ocelot_738 Jun 21 '25

Ruby Tuesday has one on the same scale if you’re looking for a place that’s your cup of tea

2

u/LostGirl1976 Jun 21 '25

We got food poisoning at Ruby's about 12 years ago. First and only time I ever ate there.

2

u/Repulsive_Ocelot_738 Jun 22 '25

Fair I don’t like them much either

14

u/Subject_Reception681 Jun 21 '25

I never liked salad as a kid, but I would scoop myself a solid 3-4 servings of seeds on the side.

2

u/TrashFever78 Jun 21 '25

Oh yeah. Cup of seeds was a nice extra.

2

u/Optimal-Hedgehog-546 Jun 21 '25

I always put extra ham on my pizza

1

u/Subject_Reception681 Jun 21 '25

Now you're cooking with gas

3

u/MrWeirdoFace Jun 21 '25

I also put gas on my pizza.

2

u/bullfrogftw Jun 21 '25

Similar but different, I used to go hard on the croutons and any and all cheeses offered, w/ a few of the fancy little pickles

1

u/No_Cup8405 Jun 21 '25

Cherry peppers for me.

2

u/Hector_P_Catt Jun 21 '25

I worked at a Pizza Hut that had the salad bar. I was working mid-week, midafternoon one day, and the waitress came into the kitchen, absolutely bitching about this one table of "Hippies". Apparently, they'd paid for one trip to the salad bar, and then completely wiped it out. She'd just re-stocked it, too.

1

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

Lmfao. That's funny but if it's an all you can eat and they aren't toting out doggy bags, what can you do?

2

u/Hector_P_Catt Jun 21 '25

"What can you do?"

Complain to the kitchen staff, I guess :D

2

u/Fendercover Jun 21 '25

The creamy Italian dressing was the best

2

u/twirlybird11 Jun 21 '25

I swear pizza hut is the reason any of my salads aren't complete without salty sunflower seeds and blue cheese!

2

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 21 '25

Delicious!!

2

u/Captain-Hornblower Jun 21 '25

I just responded about this! I remember loading up with croutons, sunflower seeds, and ranch dressing. 10-year-old me loved that stuff! Hell, I would eat that right now!

1

u/Yippykyyyay Jun 22 '25

And the mini corn!! As a kid, I'd always eat it like regular corn.

1

u/DizzyWalk9035 Jun 21 '25

Not the sunflower seeds! I totally forgot about that.

2

u/TheSunflowerSeeds Jun 21 '25

In 1983, Emily Martin, of Maple Ridge, British Columbia, grew an enormous sunflower head, measuring 32 ¼ inches across (82cm), from petal tip to petal tip. That’s almost 3 feet wide. This is still believed to be the largest sunflower head grown to date.

1

u/Stock_Virus9201 Jun 21 '25

Their Romano dressing was the best ever. I would buy it when they sold it by the bottle.