From The Food Encyclopedia by Jacques Rolland and Carol Sherman
1. any of a variety of small, usually round yeast rolls, which can be either sweet or savory. Although the source of the name for this baked good is not entirely clear, some authorities suspect it comes from an Old French word, bugne, meaning "a bump on the head" or "a boil." 2. a category of dishes in Vietnamese cuisine served over rice vermicelli, commonly seen on restaurant menus in the U.S. Bun can come with meat, seafood, poultry or vegetarian toppings, and there are hundreds of variations on the theme, some specific to a region, a town or even a single restaurant.
