By Kai Curry
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
“We’re gonna play!”
Call it “Mahjong 101” if you will. It’s the brainchild of local entrepreneur and mahjong enthusiast Jason Liu. It’s a mahjong club open to the public that teaches Taiwanese-style mahjong to new players and provides a convenient place to play for veterans of the game.
Jason Liu proudly welcomes guests to the Seattle Mahjong Club. Photo by Kai Curry.
“What exactly are we in for?” attendees wonder as they pull up to a modest home in SeaTac. On the door, a sign reads, “Seattle Mahjong Club: Let’s Play Mahjong.” It’s nothing like anyone expects. It’s much, much more. Liu and his partners have gone all in to make this the most appealing venue to learn and play the game made famous to westerners by the movie “Crazy, Rich Asians.” This is no half-baked operation in someone’s garage. This is a home dedicated to the Club, with multiple rooms for play, attractive signage in English and Chinese, snacks provided, and automated mahjong tables. You may donate if you like, but for now, it’s free.
The game of mahjong (not the “solitaire matching” version found on so many apps) was created in China in the 19th century. The telltale tiles, their oh-so-satisfying clicking sound, familiar to many, are arranged in suits not unlike a game of cards. The rules, so say some who were learning for the first time on the day the Northwest Asian Weekly visited, are similar to Gin or Five Crowns. There are several regional or national versions of mahjong, including the Taiwanese version taught at this location, Japanese, Chinese (i.e. Mainland), and even American.
During a weekend session, Jason Liu (right) teaches mahjong to newcomers including Ernest Williams II. Photo by Kai Curry.
Liu and several volunteers give generously of their time and know-how to teach the game. Liu comes to open the doors multiple times a week and sometimes for more than one session on the same day. Sessions can last for hours. There is no gambling allowed. It’s all for fun. Attendees also have the pleasure of meeting a very diverse group of people from around King County. The Club just opened in May of 2025 and already they have hosted over 25 new players. Seasoned players also come to see what’s what. Everyone enjoys the opportunity to socialize and, through learning the game, to find out more about Taiwanese culture, and about their neighbors.
It’s a balm in divisive times.
“No matter how bad or good something gets, a common game is going to bring people together,” said a new player, Ernest Williams II, a transplant from Las Vegas to the Seattle area, who came to the Club based off of an intuition he had to play mahjong. He had never played it before, though he had practiced online for several hours before arriving in person. Williams had been wanting to meet new people and try new things. The Club provides the perfect opportunity. The Club is “very welcoming,” Williams attested. He told the Northwest Asian Weekly that he recognizes the game of mahjong as “Asian” and believes it’s a good way to learn something about Taiwanese culture. At the same time, to him, the game is simply “human.”
“It’s a fast game!”
The new players, two of them, and one veteran, with Liu making up the fourth, laughed as they played a round of mahjong for the first time. Prior, Liu, with the help of one of his partners, had given a rundown of the rules of the game, as well as pro-tips. This introduction takes about an hour, by the end of which the newbies were already feeling confident.
“Make sure you watch the person to your left.” “Don’t take too long to decide—discard so that the next person’s turn can start,” Liu advises. The etiquette of the game, something emphasized in the Taiwanese version, is very important to Liu, and transmits that part of his culture. He teaches manners, he said, “how to not waste other people’s time.”
After having grown up in Taiwan, Liu went to school here, at the University of Washington. Interestingly, his major was music—singing! Unable to get much traction in that field, Liu returned to Taiwan to look after his grandmother and to teach English (he still has a business there). Just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Liu and his family returned to the Seattle area.
“I really love the Pacific Northwest,” he said. Liu became a successful car salesman—one of the best in the nation, with awards to prove it—yet his passion is mahjong. When he happened upon a friend seeking a tenant for their house in SeaTac, Liu grabbed the chance to start the Club.
“When I play, I feel happy.”
Liu loves seeing others enjoy themselves at something that is so enjoyable to him. While they are playing, other volunteers are in the kitchen cooking up food to offer to guests, which offers yet another chance to learn the culture. “It’s not like anything you can buy in a restaurant,” Liu said proudly. “It’s homemade.” Think of it as a friend inviting you to a party at their house. You will play a game, you will socialize with people you know and people you’ve just met, you will partake of refreshments, and just have an all around good time. Even if learning the game for the first time is a little bit stressful, we noticed on the day we visited that everyone who attends becomes comfortable quickly. Soon it is all laughs and smiles around the table.
A friend who lives next door to the Club encouraged Jandy Stephens to attend. She had played a version of mahjong on the app, yet found that the app experience was missing something. Playing in person at the Club is “a lot more fun, a lot more interesting,” Stephens said. Of Chinese and Vietnamese descent, Stephens grew up watching adults, “the older generation,” play mahjong in the traditional manner. She hadn’t expected the memories to start coming back to her the way they did once she played herself. “It’s immersive in the culture,” she said.
The fancy table. Photo by Kai Curry.
People that live in the neighborhoods south of Seattle—Kent, Renton, SeaTac—love the convenient location of the Club. They love that it’s not intimidating—you won’t be paired exclusively with experts right away, if at all. Liu and his helpers are mindful of curating the beginner experience. And, most of all, everyone loves the fancy automated tables.
“Can I push the button?!”
Clack, click, go the tiles into the opening at the center of the green felted table. Back down comes the glossy circular control panel. Through slotted compartments of exactly the right size rise rows of tiles, pre-stacked, and with the signature characters, images, and numbers on the other side. The requisite four players, one on each side, are poised on the edges of their seats.
It’s time to play.
Look for information on the Club, including dates, location, and times of sessions, on Facebook under “Seattle Mahjong Taiwan Chinese” and on other social media platforms.
Kai can be reached at newstips@nwasianweekly.com.