Mad for mahjong – at the new Main Line Mahjong studio and far beyond

Move over, book club. Your grandmother’s game is now the go-to excuse for girls nights for all ages.

On any given weeknight from Bala to Malvern, tables are set, wine is poured and tiles are clacking.

Mahjong lessons and clubs are proliferating like spring weeds – at expected spots like Main Line School Night, libraries, community centers and churches, but also at restaurants, women’s boutiques, and, as of last week, at Main Line Mahjong in Wayne, the area’s first studio dedicated to the game.

Partners in the popup are part-time instructors and full-time enthusiasts Suzett Hamilton, Karla Crockett and Megan Boss, Main Line moms who’ve been teaching in private homes and, last winter, at InTown Golf in Radnor.

Their new studio – in the former Grey Colt boutique near Nic + Zoe in Eagle Village Shops – wants to be your learning lab, play place, and retail shop for all things Mahjong.

There’s space for six tables, three of them in cute, semi-private “cabanas” – in keeping with the studio’s Palm Beach-preppy vibe. An interior designer when she’s not Mahjonging, Boss took the lead in decorating.

Players of all skill levels can sign up for individual and group lessons ($65 – $75), reserve private tables (from $18.75/pp) or book play sessions – in a league or in open play (from $15). Current classes include Mahj 101, Mahj 102, and for more seasoned players, 2026 Card Strategy.

“We wanted to create a community that brings people together to learn and play the game,” explains Crockett. As players become proficient, the studio plans to “create new reasons to play together” like special events to “practice specific skills, dive into a new card, and play in round robins.”

In three short months, the response to the Main Line Mahjong (MLM) has been “overwhelming,” the three women say.
The trio’s four-week teaching series at InTown Golf attracted 17 players in February, spawning a Main Line Mahjong League now 200-strong.

A home base was a logical next step. “We always talked about having a retail space,” says Hamilton. “We didn’t realize how quickly that would happen. We’re excited to see how it goes.”

While MLM is the first area’s first Mahjong studio, Main Line School Night has been the gold standard.

Flooded with interest, the adult-education nonprofit has offered a record 29 classes in three locations this term – at Lower Merion High School, Creutzberg Center in Radnor, and online. All filled quickly and had wait lists.

“People are obsessed,” shares MLSN Executive Director Rebecca Cain. “Demand is so high we’re adding another instructor to the roster to expand our weeknight classes at Creutzberg.”

MLSN just launched a Mahjong Club, which sold out in record time. And if all goes according to plan, the 1st Annual Main Line School Night Mahjong Tournament will take place next year.

In Wayne, the restaurant Maison Lotus has struck gold with monthly Mahjong nights. Owner Pearl Somboonsong says the events typically sell out three months in advance.

For $95, players receive expert instruction from certified instructor Lee Tanner, casual play, and a three-course buffet dinner with cash bar. Tanner usually brings 10 to 12 assistant instructors so guided play is available at just every table, Somboonsong tells SAVVY.

And that’s not all.

“Due to overwhelming demand,” the restaurant just announced a new Maison Lotus Mahjong Society. Founding members will get early access and priority booking to curated events centered around Mahjong, cocktails and connection, Somboonsong says. Among the Society events she envisions: cozy “Mahjong & Martini Mondays” in an upstairs dining room. “We’re creating that intimate club atmosphere.”

Across the Main Line and well beyond, Mahjong meetups are surging and Facebook groups are multiplying. 

At least one store, Louella Boutique in Wayne, holds classes between the clothes racks.

It’s the new pickleball – minus the ankle sprains and wrist injuries.

“It started with older Jewish ladies but it’s evolved into a multigenerational game with lots of 30-somethings playing,” explains Sue Pritchard, who taught the game this spring at Waynesborough Country Club and regularly plays in tournaments.

Pritchard says anyone can learn but seasoned card players and strategic thinkers tend to catch on quicker.

To feel reasonably proficient, take four, two-hour lessons, she advises.

Besides learning the ropes, you have to learn the etiquette, she says. A glass of wine and nibbles are fine but “no phones on the table – unless you’re waiting for a doctor’s call or baby’s birth.”

She recommends playing with people at your level. Pritchard enjoys 10-minute “fast-play” games. Newer players’ games can stretch 45 minutes. At every level, “everyone’s chatting about their kids before the mushing of the tiles” then “they quiet down so they can think,” she says.

Another Mahjong trend, per Pritchard: A new focus on fashion.

Game sets are crossing over from game-night staple to style statement, she says. While older women are gravitating toward vintage sets from the 20s, 30s, and 40s – Pritchard has 30 sets – younger players are investing in $100 to $400 sets that reflect a personal interest or aesthetic.

Mahjong ticks a lot of boxes, Pritchard, Somboonsong and the owners of Main Line Mahjong agree.

It’s only as competitive or as social as you want it to be.

It’s a nice workout for your brain – challenging but not impossible.

And, like any fun pastime, it fosters camaraderie.

In this post-covid, screen-centric world, people crave in-person connection more than ever, they say.

American-style Mahjong may feel like the Main Line’s game of the moment but its Chinese roots stretch back nearly two centuries – proof that engaging, lightly competitive social rituals never really go out of style. They simply get dusted off and retooled for new generations.

Ways to get in the game:

• For weekly schedules and signups at Main Line Mahjong in Eagle Village, check its website and follow on Instagram.
• To register for new Mahjong classes and events at Main Line School Night, check for web updates, subscribe to its weekly newsletter, and follow on Instagram and Facebook.
• Upcoming Mahjong Nights at Maison Lotus are May 10, June 17 and July 22.
• Play the game, meet organizer/instructor Sue Pritchard, and raise money for the Alzheimers Association at the 7^th annual “Mahjong for Memories” tournament, June 6 at Advent Lutheran Church in West Chester. Register for social or tournament play here.