meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Slate Culture Feed

Working: How a Doctor Became a Chef (And Kept Being a Doctor)

Slate Culture Feed

Slate Podcasts

Music, Tv & Film, Arts

4.22K Ratings

🗓️ 29 January 2023

⏱️ 37 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week, host Karen Han talks to Yoon Sung, an urgent care doctor in Los Angeles who decided to pivot to the culinary arts…while continuing to be a physician. In the interview, Yoon talks about what his two jobs have in common, how he balances both careers, and how he fell into his latest gig as the pastry chef at Hanchic.  After the interview, Karen and co-host Isaac Butler discuss the role of “service” in creative work and the decision to do work that makes you happy.  In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Yoon talks about his early culinary experiments in Baltimore. He also shares some of his favorite foods to eat and cook.  Do you have a question about creative work? Call us and leave a message at (304) 933-9675 or email us at working@slate.com.   Podcast production by Cameron Drews.  If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Working. Sign up now at slate.com/workingplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

It was actually my boss who's an EMT doctor that sent me down one day and he was like, you know,

0:15.4

you know, I think you would be a great physician, but have you ever thought about pursuing the culinary

0:20.4

field professionally? He was like, I really want you to go home and ask yourself, like, what makes you

0:25.7

happy? What drives you? Welcome back to Working. I'm your host, Isaac Butler. And I'm your other

0:33.9

host, Karen Hahn. Karen, how are things out there in lovely Los Angeles? Good. I love winter or,

0:40.5

like, I guess, quote unquote, winter in LA because it feels like fall on the East Coast. Like,

0:44.6

mornings and evenings are really nice. I still don't like love going out in the middle of the day,

0:48.4

but that's because I'm like a little worm. I hate being in the sun. Would you say they call you

0:53.4

doctor worm? I'm not a real doctor, but I am a real worm. Amazing. And speaking of doctors, whose

1:01.1

voice was that we heard? I'm the Segway King. Whose voice was that we heard at the top of the show?

1:06.8

So that was Yoon Sung, who is currently the pastry chef for Han Shake as well as a practicing

1:12.0

physician. Not to, you know, sound like a Gentah, but he's a doctor and a chef. That's wild.

1:19.3

Can't wait to hear about that. But in the meantime, gotta know, do our slate plus members get

1:24.8

little something extra this week? Oh, you know they do. So this week, the slate plus extra bit is,

1:30.8

I talked to you and about his experience starting his culinary journey in Baltimore. And how, like,

1:36.2

what was available to him at that time, informed his path as a chef and how he really became

1:42.8

interested in this field, like, while starting out in medical school. That sounds amazing and

1:48.7

our slate plus members, you'll have that little bit waiting for you at the end of this week's

1:53.2

episode. And if you would like that little bit to be waiting for you at the end of this week's

1:57.7

episode, not to mention, I don't know, full access behind the paywall, extra bonus episodes of

2:03.7

slow burn and big mood, little mood, feeling secure and maybe a little bit smug in the knowledge

2:09.6

that you have helped us do what we do right here at working. Why don't you sign up for slate plus

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Slate Podcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Slate Podcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.