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When I was a kid, my family would get together with their best friends every so often to play mahjong at our house for hours and hours.
All I would hear was the clicking and clacking of tiles being shuffled and assembled on their playing table, or being thrown down in disgust when someone else won a hard-fought hand. There would be tea and snacks nearby for the players to reach for, and my grandmother would make a big pot of Chinese braised beef to easily feed a crowd in between rounds.
The pairing of food and mahjong has always made getting together for a few rounds more of a social event than just playtime. It’s only natural to nosh on your favorite snacks or share a meal with friends after a long session playing the popular tile game.
A recent resurgence in the popularity of mahjong has now made it trendy to know how to play. Once seen as a game for an older generation, the proliferation of mahjong apps has contributed to its newfound prevalence with a younger audience, making it easy to play with friends whether you’re in the same room or not (though you do tend to miss the ASMR of those titles moving around the table.) And films like “The Joy Luck Club” and “Crazy Rich Asians” have helped pique a new generation’s interest.
In the spirit of in-person socializing, restaurants have now gotten in on the trend. Taking advantage of the need for a place to gather and have something tasty to snack on while playing, Peninsula eateries like Chinese American restaurant Mamahuhu and Boichik Bagels have recently organized casual events for both mahjong enthusiasts and curious novices.
Mahjong was invented in China around 1846 during the Qing Dynasty and was played mostly by male gamblers. In the 1920s, American businessmen marketed the game to Western expatriates living in Asia and subsequently started importing mahjong tile sets back to the United States. That’s when it started gaining traction outside of China.
Stateside, famous celebrities and even President Warren Harding and First Lady Florence Harding were known to play, adding to its popularity. The American variation of mahjong became particularly popular with Jewish American women, who saw it as a way to gather and socialize at a time when many country clubs and social organizations excluded Jews.
There are over 40 variations of the game played all around the globe, including Japanese, Taiwanese, Singaporean, “Old Hong Kong” style, Filipino, American and the official Chinese version, which is used for international competitions.
Mahjong is not just seen as a game, but also as a way to build community and foster friendships. In Chinese culture, marathon mahjong sessions are still common during special occasions like Lunar New Year’s Eve, when players can stay up late into the wee hours of the morning to play, eat and socialize with friends and family.
At Mamahuhu’s weekly Mahjong Monday from 6-9 p.m., all four of its Bay Area locations — including the newest in Palo Alto’s Town and Country Village — offer a place for players to meet for a game with friends or strangers. It is extremely informal, with all levels welcome and no extra charge or registration needed. You just come in, take a seat and set up one of the several tile sets they have for you to use.
Though it’s usually a four-person game, pairs and trios have been seen making it work, contributing to the casual and friendly neighborhood vibe. Mamahuhu offers beer and egg rolls for $5 on Mahjong Monday to make it easy to nosh and play.
Maggie Timbo, marketing manager for Mamahuhu, said the event series closely aligns with the company’s focus on fostering Chinese American culture and community. When the restaurant started it a few years ago at its Inner Richmond location in San Francisco, it was a way to help integrate themselves into the predominantly Asian neighborhood.
“The team was coming up with ways to connect with the community as we became a new part of it,” Timbo said. “We’ve done painting classes and book clubs, but mahjong really caught on to the point where people were asking, ‘When can I come in and learn to play?’ We started scheduling around it and then expanding it to the other locations. But we have a lot of volunteer instructors that we’ve met through the years that help us teach, and it’s really gotten quite exciting.”
Boichik Bagels also hosts mahjong events at several of its Bay Area shops. Weekly Mahjong Mondays at its main Berkeley factory and store and Tile Tuesdays at its Concord shop have drawn a regular crowd. And periodic ticketed mahjong events like the one at their Santa Clara location Sept. 19 have welcomed both experts and beginners.
Owner and founder Emily Winston has always had mahjong gatherings in mind for several of her larger bagel shops.
“We’ve got the space and I have square tables that I picked out at a number of our locations specifically for playing mahjong,” Winston said.
But the game isn’t just about building community for her customers. For the Jewish American New Jersey native, it brings back a lot of nostalgia.
“Growing up, my mom played and had a group where she’d host at our house every so often,” Winston said. “My sisters and I were usually booted upstairs. They had their own snacks but we weren’t allowed to steal some. We had to go upstairs and not bother them. And so I never learned. I thought it would be a really fun thing to offer so customers can come and hang out and play here.”
As I think back on my memories of mahjong sessions with friends and family, it was never merely about the game. It gave us a reason to get together and catch up over friendly competition, great food and plenty of spirited conversation. Just like a good meal, a game of mahjong is good for the soul.
Mamahuhu, 855 El Camino Real, Ste 75, Palo Alto; 650-494-4643, Instagram: @eatmamahuhu. Open daily from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Boichik Bagels, 855 El Camino Real #115, Palo Alto; 650-352-5995, Instagram: @boichikbagels. Open daily from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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