Which hot dog bun style is especially popular in New England?

The top-loading bun, also called the New England–style bun, is especially popular in New England.

This bun is split from the top rather than along the side. Its flat sides allow it to stand upright, making it useful for hot dogs as well as lobster rolls and clam sandwiches. The sides are often kept soft because the buns are baked close together, while the cut top can be buttered, grilled, or toasted.

The style is closely linked to Howard Johnson’s, which worked with Maine bakery J. J. Nissen in the 1940s while developing a roll for fried clam-strip sandwiches. The design later became a defining part of New England’s coastal food culture and summer roadside stands.

It is also called a split-top, top-sliced, New England, or frankfurt roll. The common mix-up is to treat “top-loading” as a universal synonym for hot-dog bun. In most of the United States, the usual bun is side-loading; the top-loading version is the regional specialty. Some markets outside New England stock it for lobster rolls or for customers familiar with the style.