LOUISVILLE, Ky. — They say if you can’t take the heat, then stay out of the kitchen, but that’s not an option for Bob Raymer. 

“I think it’s about 115. This heat is disrespectful,” says Bob Raymer, the owner of Gorilla Bob’s Grub Shack in Louisville. 

Raymer travels the country and brings tastes from coast to coast back to Louisville. 

“The sauce is the secret. It’s like Colonel Sanders says, but there ain’t no 17 spices in it,” says Raymer.  

Using propane to whip up dishes in his 80-square-foot unit makes it about 30 degrees hotter inside than it is outside. 

“I have a little air unit in here, but it doesn’t help anything. What I really need I can’t afford so we just deal with it in the best way we know,” says Raymer. “It’s sitting down for a couple of hours to the sun passes over, opening back up tonight and trying to make some money.” 

Closing early heats the other issues on his plate. 

“When we started here, the cost of my steaks were $48. Now they’re $65. My french fries were $33. Now they’re $53,” says Raymer. “Bread is $3 a loaf. It was $1.” 

Raymer says he has already raised prices twice in the past year to keep up with growing costs. 

“You don’t want to make it to where it’s unaffordable to eat out anymore because then you’re cutting on your own, but at the same time, you got to survive,” says Raymer.  

He says he’s looking for a third shift job to make ends meet. 

“Now I could do Go Fund Me and beg people for money, but we’re all in the same boat at this point,” says Raymer. 

Raymer says he’s at a point where he can’t afford to quit or to move forward. 

The grub shack is usually open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. 

Raymer says he will keep customers updated on midday closures on Gorilla Bob’s Facebook page.