'It feels surreal that we're opening the doors' - Sheffield's new beer hall Kapital opens today

Two days ago and Kapital, the latest food and drink venue in Sheffield city centre, still looked like a construction site.

But for customers stepping into the newly-opened site on Wellington Street today they’ll never know the amount of sweat, tears and hope that went in behind the scenes to bring this dream to life.

This latest venture from the team behind the award-wining Two Thirds Beer Co. on Abbeydale Road has been two years in the making, with the group desperate to share their love of European beer halls with the people of South Yorkshire.

“It does feel quite surreal that we’re now at the point where we’re going to be opening the doors,” co-founder Ben Stubbs told The Star.

“It came from seeing a lot of place in Europe and taking inspiration from those big beer cities across the continent.

“We spent a lot of time in Germany, in Prague and the Republic of Belgium - so we saw how they do things and are then bringing a little bit of each of those into one big space like this.

“But then there's also other cities in this country who have huge beer halls and restaurants. It’s like a centre piece in their city centre, and Sheffield’s not really got anything liked that.

“We like to call it grown up drinking - it’s a place you can come and have a decent beer, in a really nice environment. Quality environment, quality product and quality service.”

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The venue will have more than 30 beer taps on site, with Ben’s current favourite - the Czech lager Budvar - taking centre stage with three massive tanks on display.

“It’s a cracking beer,” he added.

“Unpasteurized, fresh and comes straight from the the cellars of the brewery in South Bohemia.

“It’s put in a tanker and driven over into the UK, straight to here .”

And while Ben and his colleagues - fellow co-founders Danny Clare and Adam Inns - could be described as beer connoisseurs, they’ve made sure to point out that the drink options will be ‘accessible’, offering the type of quality drinks that anyone can enjoy.

Kapital, a £750,000 project, comes as part of the £470 million Heart of the City development, which has included the introduction of spots like Cambridge Street Collective and Leah’s Yard.

It officially launches today (June 27) and will open from midday.