Cyrena Nouzille Alehouse Proprietor

Charlene Ross

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Cyrena Nouzille is a self-described beer nut. When her husband Jean Luc gave her a home brewery kit for one of those “almost milestone near-mid-life-crisis” birthdays I’m sure neither of them imagined that the gift would spark a hobby that would turn into a business 10 years later.

Cyrena, along with business partners brewmaster Dave Grittiths and chef Ray Luna opened Ladyface Alehouse and Brasserie on November 9, 2009 at 29281 Agoura Road in Agoura, California. (Not so coincidentally at the base of Ladyface Mountain!)

A resident of Old Agoura, Cyrena is a former exhibit designer and project coordinator for The Los Angeles Natural History Museum and Petersen Auto Museum turned stay-at-home mom who started brewing beer on her kitchen 10 years ago. She became friends with more Old Agoura residents who were also home brewers; most notably Dave Griffiths who later became the head brewer at BJ’s in Oxnard. Dave and Cyrena daydreamed about opening a brewery of their own one day and 5 years ago got serious about it and sat down to write a business plan. Cyrena met Ray, a former chef at Spago Beverly Hills and Shutters on the Beach, through her cousin and they hit it off immediately.

It was very important to Cyrena, who was a planning commissioner for the city of Agoura Hills, to be at the corner of Agoura Road and Kanan as she knows the area will one day house a local downtown and walking area. “I really feel that the city of Agoura is lacking a downtown area, but it is coming and I definitely want Ladyface to be a part of that.” When she approached a local commercial real estate broker and found that the Chuy’s location was becoming available she was a little wary at first. But when she really looked at the bones of the building she knew it was the perfect spot for their restaurant. Once inside Ladyface Alehouse and Brasserie you’d never recognize it as the place that used to have cartoon fish painted on the walls and video games in the corner. The restaurant was inspired by the brasseries of the French and Belgium countryside that serve good food all day long and are known for their beers. Ladyface Alehouse and Brasserie is filling another void in Agoura Hills by being one of the only (if not the only) restaurant/bar open until midnight 7 days a week.

Cyrena, Dave and Ray tap into their creativity by the everyday inspirations that surround them. Cyrena’s oldest daughter Chloe was the inspiration for the lady on their restaurant logo. And every beer has its own “Lady” designed by Cyrena and her mother (also an artist) on the label. (They currently brew three ales of their own but will eventually fill all 16 taps with their own beer) Dave grew up in Agoura and came up with the name Ladyface, inspired by the local mountain that looks like a lady lying down and looking up at the sky. Ray finds culinary inspiration locally by creating a seasonal menu and shopping at local sustainable farms and of course in the beer that Ladyface brews by using beer in many of his dishes such as Carbonnade de Bœuf Flamande, beef short ribs slowly braised in a Dubbel Ale.

"When people ask me what qualifications I have to open a restaurant my response is, Well, I’m a mom and that has certainly helped me learn about planning and negotiating and organizing the day’s events.” She was not a restaurateur, but she did have a vision and a woman with a vision is a powerful thing. With the help of her business partners - a brewmaster who is a foodie and a chef who loves beer her vision has become a reality.