Kim, a 54-year-old barbecue restaurant owner in central Seoul's Myeong-dong, said business had slowed sharply since late July. "It's not just dinner customers. Office workers used to come here for lunch, but we've seen a sharp drop since a few weeks ago," Kim said. "I think it's because of both the summer vacation season and the extreme heat. People just aren't coming out as much, while many are cutting back on dining out because of rising prices." Declining sales have come alongside rising operating costs, he lamented. His air conditioners have been running almost nonstop to keep the restaurant cool, pushing electricity bills to nearly double their usual level, while higher ingredient costs continue to weigh on profit margins. Similar concerns have surfaced across online communities for small business owners, where they say the prolonged heat has become yet another burden on top of weak consumer demand. "Delivery companies are charging higher fees because of the extreme heat. Business is already slow and now we're paying even more to get orders delivered," one user wrote on a Naver onlin