Dirty vintage Grand Rapids Milk ad

Mr. Fabulous Burger via The Filling Station

So I woke up this morning with the old Mr. Fables commercial song playing in my head. If you grew up in GR I bet you'll remember "People like Mr. Fables! People Like yooooou!"  This led me to getting into some Mr. Fables facebook reminiscing with some people, which in turn led me to craving a Mr. Fabulous burger!!
Well the last Fables went out of business in the late 90s-- but I remembered hearing people say there was a place out on Alpine that still makes "authentic" Mr. Fabulous burgers.
After 3 months of being on a pretty disciplined (and boring) diet, I decided today was a good day to eat some totally unhealthy food and find out about this place called "The Filling Station."

 

So the Filling Station is a ways down North Alpine, out in Comstock Park.  The building looks a lot like an old Fables building but it is actually a former Red Hot Inn.

The interior is covered in license plates and vintage signage, it has the same Fables cafeteria-style layout and yes, lots of old people.

 

I ordered a Mr. Fabulous and onion rings. There's a little bit of a wait until they call your number but not annoyingly long. 

I'm not a professional reviewer of food so I'm not really going to try and get too detailed here but was it f-ing awesome? Yes!  Especially the onion rings, I mean look at that....

I am not ashamed to sit in a restaurant alone, photographing my food, but perhaps I should be.

The Mr. Fab olive burger was pretty great too. I'd say the 2 beef patties seemed more substantial than at the other closest-place-to-Fables, Mr. Burger.

Was it an "authentic" Mr. Fables meal? Well... maybe.  The last time I'd have eaten at Fables might've been 15 years ago. That, and the way nostalgia tends to enhance things, I couldn't really say how it measures up to the real thing anymore. 

It was a dang good burger and onion rings though and a fun place to eat and people-watch.  You should totally go.

Does anyone know if there was supposed to be something "special" about the Fables sauce or was it just room-temperature mayo?

Also, if you know a link to the old Fables tv commercial, lay it on me bro!