Those accustomed to the aroma of catfish and turnip greens coming from the 200 block of College Street can follow their noses this week to a venue closer to downtown Bowling Green.

S&D Soul Favorites, a local favorite at its 200 College St. location for nearly three years, has moved to 729 Chestnut St., where owners Danny and Sherry Dewalt aim to build on the following they had at their old location.

By moving into the former home of the La Plaza del Sol Mexican restaurant, the Dewalts hope to convert their loyal takeout customers into sit-down diners and bring in new customers.

“At College Street we were really just a takeout place with some outdoor seating,” Sherry Dewalt said. “Here we’ll have a capacity of about 100 people inside and seating on the patio, too.”

The Dewalts closed the College Street eatery in June and, after weeks of renovations, opened their new location Tuesday.

Although the venue is new and the hours extended, Danny Dewalt said there will be no major changes to the menu.

“We’re known for our fried catfish,” Danny Dewalt said. “That’s what really got us started.”

That and a concoction known as The Dump that includes pork barbecue, corn cakes, cole slaw and baked beans.

Danny Dewalt, who said he started S&D Soul Favorites with a tent and then with a food truck, also plans to offer the turnip greens, pork chops and wings that were staples on College Street.

“Our customers wanted an atmosphere where they could come and sit down,” Danny Dewalt said. “We’re trying to give them what they asked for.”

Both Dewalts have been building toward the goal of owning a sit-down restaurant. Sherry Dewalt has worked as cafeteria manager at The Medical Center at Bowling Green, and her husband has a long history in food service.

“I started at Mariah’s when I was 15,” he said. “I’ve worked at Olive Garden and O’Charley’s. Cooking has been in my wheelhouse. I’ve grabbed knowledge everywhere I went.”

Sherry Dewalt, who has scaled back her job at The Medical Center to part-time in order to concentrate on S&D Soul Favorites, believes the restaurant can capitalize on the residential development downtown.

“There’s quite a bit of traffic on Chestnut,” she said. “We’re closer to downtown, so we hope to get some business from the apartments there, and more are being built.”

The Dewalts will be joined by other family members in running the restaurant, but they’re aiming to bring some new cooks, dishwashers and wait staff to downtown to keep the business running through what will be longer hours of operation.

Sherry Dewalt said the restaurant will be open from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

“We’ve brought in five people in addition to the family members,” she said. “We hope to hire about four more.”

– Follow business reporter Don Sergent on Twitter @BGDNbusiness or visit bgdailynews.com.