Following the near-immediate success of Cigar City Brewing after its foundation back in 2009, the next logical step for this Tampa institution was opening its own restaurant akin to microbrewery-minded restaurant chains like Hops and Gordon Biersch.

Well, that next step is now a reality as Cigar City has now opened their own Cigar City Brewpub located in a former TGI Fridays location at 15491 N Dale Mabry Hwy. in North Tampa.

Adorned with, admittedly, some of the coolest casual restaurant decor in Tampa including beer can lighting, wallpaper lined with old malt and yeast sacks, and a massive beer barrel chandelier overlooking the bar in the center of the restaurant.  Finished off with its own glass-walled microbrewery right in the front of the restaurant, you'd be in for a great hang out experience without even touching the food.

But, man, you'd be mistaken not to.  Cigar City Brewpub's menu comes lined with a modest assortment of creative, Tampa-inspired appetizers, entrees, salads, beer brewed in-house, cocktails, and more.

As a small publication, we lack the resources to try every appetizer on the menu, but lucked out with Cigar City's take on chiccarones, a Mexican pork rind dish, which is eyeballs-rolling-to-the-back of your head delicious.  These are hardly the crunchy pork rinds you'd find at the local 7-11.  Fried and soft with bits of fat and flesh that melt in your mouth, these artery-clogging delights are easily the front runner for the best appetizer we've tasted in 2013.

A grass-fed burger on a menu otherwise chocked full of lofty, creative dishes might just seem like a throwaway, but don't be fooled.  Cigar City's comes with a monstrous, grass-fed beef patty topped with bacon, sweet plantains, sofrito, and roasted garlic aoli on a soft brioche bun.

For $12, it's admittedly on the higher side of casual burger prices, but my god, the result of beef, bacon, plantains, and creamy garlic all coming together is near-heavenly, each element adding a foreign, contrasting component that seems to get better and better, bite by bite.

Can Cigar City do no wrong?  We try not to elevate Tampa dining and drinking destinations to godly heights, but man, it's hard to deny these guys aren't reaching for the heavens, even if they won't admit it.  Humble, refined, and intrinsically caring, Cigar City Brewpub is an instant hit, and one we will welcome with open arms over here.

What do you think?  Head out, then let us know your thoughts with a rating and review on the Cigar City Brewpub 813area business listing.