THE BRENNERS AND THE LOVES
Continuing a Lowcountry Legacy at The Fillin’ Station
story by JENNIFER BROWN-CARPENTER photos by PAUL NURNBERG
The Lowcountry is full of iconic landmarks. The Woods Memorial Bridge, the Waterfront park, even just the scenery has become iconic to locals and tourists alike. Whether you have lived in Beaufort all your life, or you’ve just driven over the bridge toward or away from downtown, then you have passed another iconic landmark: The Fillin’ Station.
It was 1988 when Mark and Rita Wolf purchased the gas station turned bar. They had a vision to turn it into a spot where locals could have a place to drink, eat, listen to music, and enjoy the incredible waterfront view. Over the next 22 years, they did just that, bringing The Fillin’ Station to life. In 2018, Mark and Rita sold The Fillin’ Station to Ron and Shannon Boyd, and for the next seven years, the Boyds worked to put their own touches on the business. During that time, they were able to build not only a committed team of employees and patrons but also turn The Fillin’ Station into the best five-star dive bar in Beaufort and the surrounding area.
What put The Fillin’ Station on the map was what Mark and Rita focused on — creating a space focused on camaraderie. They were down-to-earth people who let the locals have a space that was specifically for them. They focused on providing the community a safe space to hang out and have a good time. “The people who come to The Fillin’ Station now have been coming there for years. It’s become an icon in the area.”
Ron and Shannon purchased The Fillin’ Station right before COVID came around, which was the worst time possible to own a restaurant. With Ron’s experience, they were able to make it work. They extended the bar and deck, made sure everyone could fit outside, and even installed porta-potties. After COVID, Ron called the company to come pick up the porta-potties and was told that having them sitting there was the best advertising the company ever had. The porta-potties are still sitting there to this day.
As of June 2025, The Fillin’ Station was sold again, this time to Michelle and Randy Brenner, and Jeff and Heidi Love. “All four of us like to joke about the fact that this is what happens when you go out on the boat for the Air Show and you drink too much — you end up owning a bar,” says Michelle Brenner. A good friend of the Brenners is a broker and shared the business opportunity with them. “I knew that I had to convince my husband, and that the best way to do that was to convince Jeff Love.” Both couples were on board and within ten days, they had a contract. It was a quick turnaround, as the current owners, Ron and Shannon Boyd, were looking to transition to another bar in the Savannah area. It was important to Ron and Shannon to sell The Fillin’ Station to people who would be great with customers and keep the bar running.” The Loves and the Brenners have been friends for almost three years, both moving to the Lowcountry a few years ago. “We’ve become the absolute closest friends through this process,” Michelle says.
When it came to the Brenners and the Loves purchasing the iconic dive bar, they really didn’t feel too much pressure. “It honestly sounded like a lot of fun,” Michelle says. They knew that the bar was functioning and running well, and that it would not be like opening a brand new business. The property is fantastic and the view from the back was worth any potential problems that could arise. Both couples are newer residents to the area, having moved to the Lowcountry permanently in the last three years. “As new locals, we wanted to do something to have our own stamp on the area.” Since purchasing The Fillin’ Station, Michelle jokes that they have changed everything and nothing at the same time. For both Heidi and Michelle, giving the space a good cleanup was top priority, while preserving the dive bar look. They have done a ton of work inside and outside, bringing in new furniture, new lighting, updating the kitchen, and next on this list are the bathrooms. They have created more consistent kitchen hours, providing the ability to order more options at different times. Heidi worked to revamp the menu. “We are really pleased that we have more consistency when it comes to the kitchen and what people can order. Our personal pride and joy is that we added a salad and a chicken Caesar wrap! We knew we needed a little bit of lettuce on the menu,” Heidi laughs. They have a super creative kitchen team that is always providing them with ideas for menu items or special options. Sunday brunch has been expanded to include French toast casserole and omelettes, and there is a brunch special every week. Brunch runs from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m., and then they jump right into their regular menu. “Last week we had someone come in and they said it was the best shrimp they had had in Beaufort, which was high praise considering all the shrimp there is to be had in the area!”
One of the things that the Brenners and the Loves have been so pleased with is how well their staff has come together. Both Heidi and Michelle continue to remark on how excellent their staff is, “We are very fortunate and blessed by our team.” They highlight their manager Jen Griffith, who had been working at The Fillin’ Station before the owner transition. “She has been instrumental for us. She had been working as a bartender, but it didn’t take us any time at all to see what amazing management skills she had.”
“For all four of us, customer service is really, really important. We worried about how the locals would receive us, since we are not locals ourselves. We have had an amazing transition, and the staff and customers have just been great.” Michelle says that Heidi has been a force when it comes to keeping things running smoothly, including scheduling bands and entertainment. “She’s spectacular at working a crowd.” Heidi says, “We definitely divide and conquer.”
When the transition was taking place, Ron had scheduled bands for a couple of months to help the Brenners and Loves as they settled into their new positions. Since then, Heidi has scheduled the same genres of music, allowing for some expansion as well. She continues to schedule mostly local acts, but also has brought in artists from northern South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. As well as bringing in these acts, such as J Edwards, Trashy Annie (on the latest season of Survivor), some tribute bands, and Andrew Beam, they are also continuing to feature the artists you know and love: Campfire Tyler (every Sunday from 11 a.m. -2 p.m.) and Walker Dean (every Wednesday starting at 5 p.m.). And not to worry, they are still providing karaoke options on the weekends! Heidi is booking these events straight into 2026 already.
Not only can you go enjoy live music and good food multiple times during the week at The Fillin’ Station, but you can also rent the space out for your own personal event. Whether it be a graduation party, a rehearsal dinner, or even a reception space for your wedding, The Fillin’ Station is there to meet your needs. “We can get creative with those types of events, providing Lowcountry Boil or barbecue, depending on what the customers want.”
The colder months are coming, and The Fillin’ Station is primarily an outdoor venue, but don’t let that keep you from stopping in. The Brenners and Loves have truly thought of everything, adding heaters to the outside space and planning to place commercial-level curtains that can slide around the deck out back so that you can stay warm while still enjoying the outside space and the beautiful view. They have also added a few tables inside. Once those curtains are drawn, the heaters are running, and you’ve had a few drinks, you won’t even realize that it’s getting colder out. The outside bar will be open Wednesday through Sunday.
The smoothness of the transition, the wonderful team, and the acts they have been able to bring in speak “directly to the community of Beaufort,” Michelle states. “Everybody steps right in, everybody talks to everybody else. It is just amazing.”
Moving forward, Heidi would like to bring in something fun and different regarding the entertainment, maybe highlighting some comedy acts. It is really important for both couples that The Fillin’ Station remains Beaufort’s five-star local dive bar. “We do not want to change that at all. We want to make sure that people keep pulling in and stopping, whether they are locals who have been coming for years and years, or they’re visitors, who just see it on their way downtown. We want to stay integrated into the community. People love the local culture and that’s how we want to keep it. We have a really great spot, a really great staff, and really, really great customers.”
