Lobster roll

Lobster roll

A lobster roll from The Lobster Claw located in Bar Harbor, Maine
Type	Sandwich
Place of origin	United States
Region or state	New England
Main ingredients	New England-style hot dog bun or similar bread roll, lobster meat, mayonnaise or drawn butter, sometimes celery or scallions

A traditional lobster roll is a sandwich filled with lobster meat soaked in butter and served on a steamed hot dog bun or similar roll, so that the opening is on the top rather than on the side. Variants of the sandwich made in other parts of New England, which may contain diced celery or scallion, and mayonnaise. It may also contain lettuce, lemon juice, salt and black pepper. Traditional New England restaurants serve lobster rolls with a side of potato chips or french fries The lobster roll was originated at a restaurant named Perry's, in Milford, Connecticut, as early as 1929, according to John Mariani's "Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink." Once Perry's put the new sandwich on its menu, its popularity spread up and down the Connecticut coast, but not far beyond it. For those residing in Connecticut, a lobster roll served warm is simply called a "lobster roll" while the lobster roll served cold is called a "lobster salad roll". The lobster salad roll took off on the Eastern End of Long Island, New York beginning in 1965, starting with the pioneer Lobster Roll Restaurant The Lobster Roll.

As far back as 1970, chopped lobster meat heated in drawn butter was served on a hot dog bun at road ide stands such as Red's Eats in Maine. Lobster rolls in the U.S. are associated with the state of Maine, but are also commonly available at seafood restaurants in the other New England states and on Eastern Long Island, where lobster fishing is common.

Lobster rolls prepared in Maine usually have common characteristics. Firstly, the roll itself is a "New England" or "Frankfurter" roll baked differently from a standard hot dog roll, so the sides are flat and can be buttered on the outside and lightly grilled or toasted, and is split on the top instead of the side. Second, the lobster meat in the roll is usually served cold, rather than warm or hot. Thirdly, there may be a light spread of mayonnaise inside the bun or tossed with the meat before filling the roll, though they usually do not have any other ingredients typical of the "lobster salad" variation in other parts of New England. The lobster meat is usually knuckle, claw, and tail meat chunks, with 4oz of meat or a quarter pound ("¼ pound"), the commonly advertised serving size.