Owner and general manager Andrea Durow, once a partner at Moore’s Two Olives Cafe, decided to not only curb the chain deli trend, but the chain trend, in general.

“We were trying to serve fresh food in south suburban Oklahoma City,” Durow said. “There aren’t a lot of locally owned, made-from-scratch type restaurants here, and we wanted to offer that to people around here.”

The Stuffed Olive certainly strikes the perfect balance between the convenience of the Panera Bread set and sit-down restaurant quality, with the added benefit of having the loving feel of homemade food. Each of the menu’s 16 standard sandwich offerings does its part in showing off that careful attention.

right, the ham and Brie sandwich

The ham and Brie ($6.99) is especially tasty, a warm concoction of gooey Brie and spiral-sliced ham that finds a brilliant counterpart in the accompanying subtly sweet caramelized onions and pepper jelly, with mayo there to smooth out the entire plate.

The Sicilian club ($6.99) is another standout with fresh turkey, along with salami and provolone seemingly flown straight in from Italy; the mayo is cut with a bright basil pesto to add a nice bit of cream and bite.

There are others, like the hot and hearty CBMS ($6.99) — which is chicken, bacon, mushroom and Swiss — and the classic muffuletta ($7.25) with a tangy spread of olive salad and a particularly scrumptious basil vinaigrette.

The soups ($4.29 for a cup, $5.99 for a bowl) and salads ($5.95) aren’t slouches, either. The Caesar BLT takes the standard formula and beefs — err, porks — it up with bacon, which feels like cheating, but I’m more than willing to let that slide. 

There’s also the Asian-leaning Bonsai that pairs mixed greens with a healthy portion of fruit (mandarins and apples), along with feta, spiced nuts and a flavorful ginger-soy sauce dressing.

right, the strawberry spinach salad and chicken corn soup

Durow notes that many customers gravitate toward some of the healthier options, especially the OMG chicken salad ($6.99) and the pesto garden ($7.25), the latter of which is served open-faced on focaccia with a salty artichoke heart, onion, olive salad, mushroom, the aforementioned pesto mayo and creamy goat cheese.

The tomato-basil soup is another popular choice, and all three dishes seem to lead to a fair amount of repeat customers.