Sandwiches with a side of comfort

I enjoyed Susan Spano’s missive from Paris [“Sandwiches She Has Known, Loved,” Her World, July 10] and wanted to fill you in on the ultimate “light” sandwich, a summer favorite of mine.

I believe I first had an olive sandwich when I was a kid. You slice black olives crosswise into pieces about one-eighth-inch thick. Using lightly toasted wheat or rye bread, smear with mayo and cover with a nice dense layer of the sliced olives. I’ve used canned pre-chopped olives, but they tend to be drier than the canned whole olives, and one of the secrets to getting a really flavorful olive sandwich is that you slice the olives just before use.

It’s heavenly.

Robert Helfman

Los Angeles

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SPANO writes that she has never had a top-notch sandwich in England.

My remembrances are quite different. I often re-create sandwiches I originally enjoyed there. The toasted Brie and avocado on baguette purchased from a coffee shop in Soho after the theater. The late-night club sandwiches I enjoyed in the lobby of my hotel across from Scotland Yard. Shreds of roasted chicken substituted for turkey. It included sliced hard-boiled egg and avocado.

The tastiest was from a delicious selection at Pret a Manger found all over London -- toasted country bread slathered with olive oil, sliced tomato, fresh basil, mozzarella and toasted pine nuts. True comfort food after a long, wonderful day of touring.

Shari Rathet

West Chester, Pa.

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