Mahjong Fairy in February
Last month the new Mahjong Fairy parlor opened in Hachioji (West Tokyo). Mahjong Fairy is a non-smoking parlor that was started by Yoko Watanabe. The Hachioji parlor is the first one to use the name Fairy after the original parlor opened in Shinjuku (central Tokyo) in 2006.
I have the privilege of running the Hachioji parlor along with the store manager, Akira Ohara. I’m the resident non-smoking pro and he runs the place. I’m in charge of the online stuff (website, etc.) and Ohara manages the staff and tells me what table to sit at when I play.
We opened on February 6th and I spent the month playing 5-10 games each day (I worked about 20 days out of the month).
After all that time working for an hourly wage, I have very little to show for it. This is the most I have ever played casino-style mahjong in my life. Certainly there will be many hours in the future, but the beginning is a rough road. Not only do I have to get used to the rules, the gambling, the system and the customers, I also have to make sure that the customers are happy playing with me, in my parlor and that they feel happy about the way I play.
At the same time Ohara and I have the staff to run, the phone to answer and the customers to entertain. It’s a tough job and no one will ever tell you differently. It makes it hard to come out ahead in the game itself. And when there’s a rake to play, it’s even harder.
The parlor itself is on the small side, 6 tables, and we accept both sets of 4 and single players. In the one month we’ve been open we’ve gathered a number of regular customers and are in the market for more. The location is great (a 30 second walk from the station) and although the majority of mahjong players smoke, our customers appreciate the clean air in our humble abode.
If you’re in the Tokyo area drop by. I’ll be writing monthly updates about the parlor and I’d be happy to set up a study session for those that aren’t yet comfortable playing “Free” yet in English or Japanese.
