Poker Night, Season 2

Sydney Went First‍

Anh hosted Poker Night at the Lyra office in Millers Point, doors from 6pm. On paper it was a 4 hour thing but reality was the games ran way past close and nobody made a move to leave. 30+ people packed into the dining room, engineers, founders and operators all at the same tables, which is the whole point. Free food, free drinks, a $50 buy in fully covered by us, and conversation that actually went somewhere between hands.

The best part: most people walked out richer than they walked in (we'll  let you guess who did the funding). Anh sat down as the host and got comprehensively rinsed by his own guests, which he took like a champ.

Melbourne Added Mahjong

A week later, the Melbourne office ran its own edition and threw mahjong into the mix. We kept it tighter this time, everyone crowded into one room instead of spread across the floor, with the poker split across 2 tables, one beginner friendly and one for the people who clearly do this at home. New players got walked through the rules on a whiteboard before the chips came out, so nobody was left guessing. Same energy, same free food, just with the satisfying clack of mahjong tiles layered underneath.

Why This Works

There is something about a poker table that a scheduled catch up never quite gets. You have engineers who ship all week sitting across from founders they would normally only meet on a call, everyone reading each other, everyone talking. Free food and a covered buy in take the pressure off, and what is left is just people enjoying each other's company for a few hours. Genuinely, why is this not the norm.

Season 3 Is Next

So we are making it monthly with the next night is already filling up faster than the last, and both cities are in the rotation now. If you want in, keep an eye out for the Luma link, because the room only holds so many and the seats go quick.

That was EngFest 5 of 12 for the year. Next up is EngFest 6/12, our whole company onsite week, and it gets its own recap.

See you at the table.