Mahjong has taken the Capital Region by storm
It’s a sunny weekday afternoon at Greystone Country Club in Denham Springs and six tables of mahjong are underway. Colorful mats with whimsical designs lie across each surface, while the soothing click-clack of the game’s iconic tiles is audible as players aim to create a winning hand. The session has been organized by Mahj in the City GBR, one of a growing number of area-wide mahjong outfits.
Experienced players zip through multiple games, while newbies take it slower to hone their skills. Regardless of level, the assembled enthusiasts say they relish the opportunity to refine their skills. Mahjong, they insist, is just plain addictive.
“We’ll play sometimes at Barnes & Noble,” says Mahj in the City regular Lydia Acosta. “And when they say they’re closing, we’ll say, ‘Okay, we’ve got time to squeeze in one more game.’”
With its aesthetic charm, opportunity to socialize and sense of accomplishment, modern mahjong has spread like wildfire across the country and greater Baton Rouge over the past few years. It’s conceivable that on any given day across the Capital Region, matches are underway. They take place in local libraries, community spaces, restaurants, meeting rooms, living rooms, retail stores, sorority houses and bookstores. Middle-aged women are the game’s core constituency, but they’re joined by growing numbers of college students, families and men.
Its fans say the game is both socially satisfying and mentally stimulating. Many swear that it eases loneliness. “We had one person tell us she went from a really lonely existence to having 200 friends,” says Mahj in the City GBR co-founder Dawn Birdsong.
Organized opportunities to play in Baton Rouge proper started around two years ago with the opening of Mahjong Rouge by friends Mauree Brooksher and Stephanie Politz but have quickly expanded throughout
the region.
Mahjong aficionado Amanda Bolton started Mahj Central in 2025 to provide an option closer to her Central home. “I just wanted to teach others in the area to play,” Bolton says. “But it blew up. I have seen tremendous growth over the last year. It’s just really taken off.”
Bolton, who works full time, is passionate about the game. She recently hosted a summer mahjong retreat in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, attended by 80 women from six states. She has also opened a dedicated space called Mahj Central, The Studio to host mahjong events.
A pharmacist by training, Myra Black founded another business, RX for Mahjong, which teaches lessons and hosts open play events. Black runs it with her daughter and co-founder, a pharmacy technician. She sees the game as both a positive escape and a confidence builder. “I fell in love with it at the same time that I was all of a sudden an empty-nester,” Black says. “It became a great resource for me to get out and do more things.”
The East Baton Rouge Parish Library has also gotten into the act with mahjong open play currently offered at its South, Main and Jones Creek branches. It started with a patron request. BellSouth retiree Faith Ourso approached the South Branch, known for its adult game leagues, about offering mahjong. She had been playing with a group called the Baton Rouge Bammers for several years and wanted to share the fun. Branch manager Patrick Abadie and lead librarian Alia Kempton immediately said yes.
“Our patrons really wanted this program,” Abadie says. “The library is about creating unique experiences, adding quality of life, connection and community. I think all of those things can be found in the mahjong program.”
Jennifer Waghalter, founder of the city’s first dedicated mahjong space, The Mahjong House, says she has watched demand for the game surge since her business opened in 2024. The downtown Baton Rouge cottage offers lessons, hosts events and sells high-end retail mats and tiles. She says she has recently seen an uptick in mahjong as a cornerstone for corporate events. She has also created “stay and play” options that combine experiences at The Mahjong House with overnights in her downtown Baton Rouge vacation rentals, including one in the same building as the game venue and retail site.
Waghalter says she’s also seeing more men play, including her college-aged son. There are even game sets designed with masculine colors and textures.
“Men enjoy it,” she says. “It’s got strategy and competition.”
Back at Greystone Country Club, Acosta confirms a common declaration: Playing mahjong has helped her feel less isolated. After moving home to Baton Rouge in 2016, she faced personal challenges that included house flooding, caring for an aging mother, and a cancer diagnosis. But after winning a set of tiles in a raffle and learning about mahjong online, she took a chance and signed up for Mahj in the City’s Bambird Scramble, a ladder competition. Even though Acosta says she didn’t feel confident about her skills, she began showing up for matches and soon caught on.
Acosta doesn’t hold back when she says the game has changed her life. “Mahjong for me is about community,” she says. “I’m kind of the poster child for it.”
The Capital Region’s growing mahjong scene
East Baton Rouge Parish Library
South, Main and Jones Creek branches
Weekly open play with mats and tiles available. Dates and times are found in the library newsletter and online.
Rx for Mahjong
Locations vary
Lessons and group play at locations like Houmas House, Jabby’s Pizza and The Plantry Café.
Mahj Central
Locations vary
The Studio
18564 Magnolia Bridge Rd.
Players sign up for lessons and matches through an online portal. Recently opened The Studio, a dedicated space.
Mahj in the City GBR
Locations vary
Hosts private lessons, group lessons and a “Bambird Scramble” ladder league where players opt into matches over multiple weeks.
The Mahjong House
747 St. Charles St.
Baton Rouge’s first dedicated space for all things mahjong including classes, open play, tournaments, a retail collection and overnight “stay and play” experiences.
Mahjong Rouge
Locations vary
Launched in 2024 and hosts private lessons, private parties, open play for beginners and experts and children’s lessons.
The Hive Mahjong
2229 Augusta Ln.
Denham Springs
Opened in June, the facility offers members 24/7 access to play mahjong and hosts lessons and events.
Magnolia Mahj
Locations vary
Zachary-based organization that offers lessons, open play meetups, private parties and tile set rentals.
This article was originally published in the September 2026 issue of 225 Magazine.
