Sandwich review: Chicken, Ham & Cheddar from deli2go, and Smoked Ham & Coleslaw by Marks & Spencer's Simply M&S range

The official description for each of these sandwiches is:

Roast chicken breast, smoked formed ham, mild cheddar cheese, tomato, mixed salad leaves, and English mustard mayonnaise on malted wheatgrain bread (left)

and:

Smoked British ham with shredded cabbage, carrots, onions and mustard in mayonnaise on malted brown bread (right)

Now, I have decided to review these two sandwiches together, instead of individually, for a number of reasons.  Firstly, both fillings include ham - nothing hugely weird about this, of course, but in bought sandwiches bacon is far more normal.  And, secondly, I ate these two sandwiches within a couple of days of each, and was struck by the similarities between the two of them - even if they purport to be vastly different sandwiches.

If I were asked to describe both sandwiches in one word, I would say:  'overmayonated'.  (I know that isn't a real word, but I am hoping it will catch on.)  Both M&S and deli2go have made the mistake of simply lathering their creations in mayonnaise in the hope that this will make them enjoyable.  It doesn't.

The creamy swathes of mayonnaise ensured that the other flavours (which could have been so good) were left sadly muted and subdued.  In much the same way that putting too much milk into a cup of tea or coffee will ruin in, here the flavours of smoked ham, onions and English mustard which should've come bounding strongly through were barely present.

It was a shame that deli2go also chose to use 'mild cheddar cheese'.  A strong cheddar would've saved the sandwich from interminable blandness - as it was, however, the mild cheese simply added to the overall palette of tasteless dairy creaminess, and added nothing to the sandwich save its texture.

On the whole, I was left disappointed by these two sandwiches - either of which could quite easily have been salvaged with stronger flavours and slightly less mayonnaise.

I would not buy either of these sandwiches again.