Jan. 31—When the owners of Flavors on the Vine Restaurant decided to close up shop, Sandra Goble and Janet Dudek saw an opportunity to own their own restaurant.

Now, Goble and Dudek's Golden Girls Restaurant at 34860 Vine St. in Eastlake, will be turning a year old this Valentine's Day.

"I've been here for 47 years in June, so I've seen many owners and name changes," said Goble, who was originally going to go into the Army. But when she came to visit her sister, she ended up getting a job in the restaurant business and has never left.

For both Goble and Dudek, the first year of owning the Golden Girls Restaurant went quickly. Not only have the two been business partners, but good friends with much in common, they said.

With roughly 11 employed, everyone pitches in and has each other's backs, the owners say.

"We like people. We're more like a family and we want our employees to be part of that family," Dudek said. "I worked here for about 15 years for two different owners, and here we are. We've met a lot of nice people, and we're getting a lot of returns.

"We must be doing something a little right," Dudek said with a laugh. "We're doing a lot of homemade cooking, which I think a lot of places do not do."

Golden Girls Restaurant also offers breakfast, lunch and dinner specials. What the owners have been finding is the need for home-cooked meals that are reasonably priced.

"I already had a customer order half a gallon of vegetable soup to go," Goble said. "We do Uber Eats and Door Dash. The other day, we had a Door Dash order and the gentleman actually called here to say the food was amazing. Some new people who happen to see us stop in because they have always seen us, but never stopped."

In addition to the eight homemade soups made at the restaurant, menu items include homemade meatloaf, homemade ranch dressing for the salad bar, lasagna, stuffed peppers, cabbage rolls, roast pork and kraut and homemade mashed potatoes.

"We made chili today, and we do our own roast beef, roast turkey, stuffed pork chops and stuffing," Dudek said. "We think we're on the right track. We just have to do a little more."

Goble began her serving career at Flavors on the Vine in 1975. Likewise, Dudek worked for Flavors for many years and also brings experience of restaurant ownership from her previous eatery called Jan's Place in Mentor.

The pair have invested their lives and raised their children locally.

"When I was 16, I started working at The Ohio Bell Telephone Company, but it didn't work out that way and I got into the restaurant business," Dudek said. "With waitressing, you always have money in your pocket and when you're raising children, you need that income. That's how I got into this business."

When Flavors on the Vine came up for sale, Dudek and Goble hadn't decided on a name after taking ownership.

"We both looked at each other and said, 'The Golden Girls.' We're both golden," Goble said.

Goble and Dudek plan to keep building the business, which is open seven days a week.

"I would like, someday before I'm gone, to see this restaurant full of people all the time," Dudek said.