Red Eye Mahjong Club sprouted from a five-person apartment session into something bigger. Now 40 players show up at spots across Tampa Bay. Jacob Chang kicked things off by teaching friends in their apartment about two years back, gathering every Tuesday for over a year until the space couldn’t hold everyone anymore.
They had to find new places to play. Chang walked into Lost and Found one day, asked the bartender if his crew could set up a few games, and got the green light. The club planted roots there while membership kept climbing.
Chang has Chinese and Ecuadorian roots and grew up in Tampa. His grandmother — he calls her “Popo” — taught him the game. He built stacks, little “forts” with the tiles, before he grasped the rules and jumped into his first real match around age 13.
“Any place I’ve pretty much asked, they were like, ‘Yeah, that sounds cool; you should do it,'” said Chang, according to I Love the Burg.
Venues like having them around because events fall on weekdays. “It’s a win-win because we usually play on the weekdays, so a lot of bars and restaurants are very happy to have us in on their slow days,” Chang said. “We bring in about 40 people who will buy drinks and support their business.”
The club runs beginner nights where coaches teach the game from scratch. Chang makes sure nobody feels like they’re holding others back or feels ashamed for not knowing how to play. His family members work as coaches, his mother handles check-ins, and his girlfriend spins tracks as the resident DJ.
“If someone tells me I had a great time tonight, then I did my job,” he said. “I think it’s what fundamentally being a human is all about: being surrounded by other people, playing games, and eating good food.”
Chang wants to branch out to other cities like Orlando and Miami or launch chapters in places like Atlanta or New York. For now, he sticks with his local community. Players can find the event calendar on Instagram to join a beginner’s night.