Liquid Conversations: The Matchbox serves up vision and vibes in a secret (for now) Midtown garden

The world feels increasingly sterile and uninspired. As AI-curated bars (and kinda everything) grow and fill the drinking world with lackluster vibes, it’s getting harder to walk into a space and feel something new.

Don’t get me wrong—I get why using AI to generate decor, drink menus and even themes for bars is growing in popularity: It’s much easier than the alternative, which is to have a vision, put yourself out there, and take a risk on yourself and your point of view—with the hope that others will feel the same way you do.

In Midtown, behind Bibo Coffee and Gelato, there is a shack, a funky little shack, that feels equal parts familiar and new: The Matchbox. This new bar gives me the feeling I had when I first sat down for coffee at the legendary but sadly closed Deux Gros Nez, as if I were in a secret club I’d just found. When you walk up to The Matchbox from the street, you are already making a choice to peek into a new world: A secret garden greets you as you peer around the corner to a clubhouse of cocktails.

I sat down with The Matchbox’s owner, Lex Niemann, to chat about why this new space feels so cool, and what it takes to put your vision out there.

“You kind of have to pursue it,” Niemann told me. “(The space) is not, like, in your face, so I feel like the people who actually come and look for this space, they feel like they’ve kind of happened upon a treasure, almost.”

Niemann is one of the Reno bartending scene’s treasures. With 20 years of experience, she has a warm, welcoming bartending style that has graced local haunts like Chapel Tavern and Royce. Early in 2026, Lex was approached by A.J. Martin, the new full owner of Bibo Coffee Roasters, who took over in late 2024, about doing something new with the space behind his Center Street location.

“A.J. was looking to do something a little bit different,” Niemann said. “There are a lot of other coffee shops in Reno, and he wanted to do something new that would be on everyone’s mind, and do something a little bit out of the ordinary. So, he approached me.”

One of the shared traits among my favorite bartenders: When they are behind the bar, the space is theirs; they can turn your bad day into a good one, or a quick stop for a drink into a long, relaxing refresh. Niemann is a master of vibe when she is behind the bar, and The Matchbox reflects her laid-back, welcoming style.

“I think I’m a big-vibe girly,” Niemann said. “So, vibes are really important to me, and if people feel good in the space, people are naturally drawn to come back to the space.”

The bar’s large sunshades, flowers and picnic tables create a feeling of hanging out in your best friend’s backyard. The drink menu is just as vibey, with ambitious cocktails like the Marchante, with mezcal, tamarind and a house-made blackberry sage shrub. There are also beers on draft, a large non-alcoholic cocktail menu and, of course, shots of amaro.

“I just kind of try to be as authentic to myself and what I want to translate, and I think a lot of people are responding very positively to the space,” Niemann said.

She is the sole owner and sole bartender at The Matchbox, so when it’s open, you are sitting with her.

“There is a freedom to that,” Niemann said. “It’s not stress, but I guess pressure, just because this is my extension of myself.”

Now that The Matchbox has been open for two months, beloved regulars are already settling in, and word-of-mouth advertising is going great.

“People from out of town—a lot of people from the Bay Area have actually shown up,” Niemann said. “And I’m like, ‘How did you find this place?’ ‘Oh, my friend told me about it. Another bartender told me about it.’”

More than ever, we as a community need to show up for the entrepreneurs who are putting themselves out there to showcase their vibe and vision. If you feel the pressure in your pocketbook at the grocery store, imagine the pains of owning a business right now. The Matchbox is what happens when you have someone with great skills and exceptional style who wants to take a risk on themselves. So take a chance; peek around the corner; and have a cocktail or four in a secret garden of the best of Reno’s vibes.

The Matchbox, at 717 S. Center St., in Reno, is open Fridays through Mondays throughout the warm weather months. To learn more, visit @thematchboxreno on Instagram.