A Department of Business and Industry Office of the Labor Commissioner document from last month forwarded to Our Town Reno indicates it received a complaint alleging that Coffee N’ Comics on Moana Lane may have been in violation of a statute requiring businesses to provide employees with “meal breaks and or rest periods as required under Nevada law.”
We contacted Coffee N’ Comics via Instagram and repeatedly called the number listed at their Moana Lane address but received no response.
The notice from October 17th indicates an administrative penalty of up to $5,000 can be imposed for any violation, asking this business which also has a location in Sparks and one inside the Renaissance Hotel to provide a copy of policies and procedures related to the complaint.
If no policy is available, the letter asks for a detailed explanation of “what the company policies and procedures are for breaks and meal periods.”
We received an email back from the compliance audit investigator who signed the letter indicating she was no longer in that position. A follow up email from the Office of the Labor Commissioner asked us to fill out a form which we did to receive an update about this complaint. We will update if we receive an answer.
Current and former employees have sent more disturbing allegations to Our Town Reno concerning the work environment at Coffee N’ Comics, including what they call extremely low pay for managers, accusations of owners taking tips intended for workers, ownership not protecting employees against harassing customers as well as making sexual comments during meetings.
Indeed listings for Coffee N’ Comics have baristas at over $22 an hour but several former and current employees have told us wages are much lower.
A Reddit post was made several years ago describing how ownership was allegedly taking money from credit card tips, before promising to stop.
The website for Coffee N’ Comics indicates in an origin story section that “Raymond Martinez and Alex Farside came together to try and create a coffee shop that feels like home. They wanted to create a space that is linked to the local community and continues to give back to the great people that support the store everyday. One day it might be a Power Ranger signing autographs, the next day it could be a fundraiser to help a local organization. Ray and Alex wanted to create a space that is friendly, fun, and a safe space for everyone in the community!”
Its past events have included a Tuesday comedy night, a Friday night magic show and Saturday night cosplay karaoke, and while some of these are still ongoing, some have had less frequency in recent months.
Our Town Reno reporting, November 20th 2025