San Antonio is a taco town, through and through. When it comes to quick, satisfying street food, nothing will ever rival this city's copious offerings of goodness folded into a tortilla.

That doesn't mean there won't be challengers.

While nobody visits San Antonio for its sandwich culture, momentum has been growing over the past couple of years with restaurants Beacon Hill Market & Deli, the Newstand, Pullman Market, Wicked Wich and others joining the handful of existing sandwich specialists.

"I would say this is just the beginning," said the Newstand co-owner Page Pressley. "It’s one of those things where you have some people who are trying to introduce their own take on a thing to a city that hasn’t had a focused approach to that offering."

While newcomers are stuffing everything imaginable between two slices of bread, one constant you'll find at all these sandwich shops is the classic Italian. It goes by a score of names: hoagie, hero, grinder, sub. Some folks think of it as a wedge or spuckie, among other monikers. Whatever it's called on the menu, it always features a cadre of cold-cuts and vegetables, and, most commonly, shredded lettuce, tomato and paper-thin slices of onion.

Beacon Hill Market & Deli co-owner Matt McLaughlin hails from Philadelphia — solid "hoagie" territory — and always has a version of the sandwich on his menu. For him, the sandwich is as much about nostalgia as sustenance.

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"Growing up in Philadelphia, that was the go-to thing," McLaughlin said. "If someone was having a party or whatever, someone would always show up with a bag of hoagies."

Settling in San Antonio, McLaughlin found a niche in the city's food scene by producing cocktail syrups spiked with quinine and other botanical ingredients under the Bexar Tonics label along with his wife, Maray McChesney.

When the couple eyed a potential retail spot on Blanco Road, they thought it might make a decent place to sling a few sandwiches on the weekend. That sandwich plan quickly took over and morphed into Beacon Hill Market & Deli, a place where McLaughlin can share his East Coast appetite with fellow transplants and native Texans alike.

"Every time I craved a sandwich, I really couldn’t find someone doing it. I mean, sure, you could go to a chain like Subway or Jimmy John's and find something decent, but it was mass-produced and not real," McLaughlin said. "I couldn’t find something I was familiar with. That I grew up with. It’s just something I felt wasn't here."

Beacon Hill keeps its version of the Italian sandwich fairly classic, served on a long roll stuffed with paper-thin slices of meat and cheese, nearly transparent slices of onion and a fistful of shredded lettuce.

 You'll find some variations in town. Sometimes the onions are red, and at other spots they'll be yellow. The mixture of meats can range from basic ham and salami to spicy soppressata or fatty mortadella. The bread — a key factor in keeping what is essentially an antipasto salad contained — is the main factor distinguishing the multiple iterations you'll find in San Antonio.

At the Newstand, all sandwiches are served on freshly baked focaccia, with a tender crumb hidden just below a thin, shattering crust.

"The thing that’s so important about sandwich culture, to me at least, is the bread," Pressley said. "I think the thing that has to go in congress with sandwich culture is baking culture. Our bread comes out of the oven at 10 a.m. every day and gets a 30-minute rest. To me, it is one of those short-list thing that when you do it really well, it's an immediate repeat customer and an immediate great experience. It satisfies a craving that’s so specific."

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Whatever you call your Italian sandwich, or however you like it prepared (just don't ask for mustard — "Back east, that’s a no-no," McLaughlin said.) you're more likely than ever to find it in San Antonio. Here are seven versions we can wholeheartedly endorse.

Beacon Hill Market & Deli: This is a textbook Italian. The mastery here is in the layering, with slices of sharp provolone cheese creating a moisture barrier protecting the bread from sogging out under the lettuce and tomatoes. The onions are shaved wafer-thin and generously applied for a bite that's guaranteed to linger on your breath for a spell. Banana peppers aren't standard but can be added; however, you probably won't miss them with the spicy chile relish that comes with the order. 1717 Blanco Road, 210-999-5239, Facebook: Beacon Hill Market And Deli

Brown Bag Sandwich Shop: This sandwich shop near the San Antonio International Airport occupies a small, humble spot along Wetmore Road, but its sandwiches are anything but modest. For the Italian,  a Dagwood-caliber quantity of sliced ham and salami is stuffed into a sub-style roll along with lettuce, tomato and red onion. You can dress up  your sandwich with an optional side of Hawaiian dressing for an extra tangy bite. 11035 Wetmore Road, 210-490-3915, brownbagsa.com

The Newstand: The Italian here is dubbed "The Post" and is served on a quarter-wedge of a large, round focaccia. Your first few bites mostly will be the provolone cheese and tender mortadella that overhang the bread and remaining ingredients. Once that outer edge of meat and cheese is gone, you'll be able to get a good grip on the bread and keep the salami, capicola and vegetables — all perfectly doused with oil and vinegar — properly contained for a perfect bite. Bonus for bread fans: Once the fillings are gone, you'll probably be left with a thin rim of crusty focaccia to gnaw on. If you enjoy eating pizza crusts, you'll love this sandwich. 1900 Broadway, Suite 106, 210-459-9779, thenewstandtx.com

Pullman Market: The sandwich stand inside the new Pullman Market is located directly next to its bakery, which provides the outstanding bread for its La Italiana. This version snubs East Coast standards with a schmear of spicy mustard, but you probably won't mind. The meats include salami, coppa and prosciutto along with lettuce, tomato and onions. Zippy banana peppers bring tang and heat to the mix for a meal that makes a perfect break from a grocery run at this sparkling new food hall. 221 Newell Ave., 210-759-0086, pullmanmarket.com

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Smoke Shack Delicatexan: This spot is primarily a marketplace with a butcher counter featuring top-shelf cuts of meat and culinary curiosities such as Flamin' Hot Cheetos-infused sausages. A  sandwich counter puts those proteins to good use. On the far left side of the room, you'll find an Italian filled with soppressata, finocchiona, coppa and pepperoncini on the menu. Italian sandwiches tend to be gigantic monstrosities that can easily feed two or more people. At the Delicatexan, you'll receive a meal meant for one, properly portioned for an easy afternoon lunch. 3710 Broadway, 210-549-1090, smokeshackdelicatexan.com

The Wicked Wich: If you like spice, this is the Italian for you. The Hero, as the menu bills it, dresses Genoa salami, capicola, soppressata and mortadella along with punchy provolone cheese, spicy mustard, pepperoncini and cherry peppers on a sub-style roll. Wicked Wich, located near the Deco District along Fredericksburg Road, is probably the best bet for a sandwich shop if you need vegan or vegetarian options, with a killer chickpea salad sandwich loaded with sprouts, cucumber, pickles and other veggies. 825 Fredericksburg Road, 210-929-7693, wickedwichtx.com

Zito's Deli: This San Antonio mainstay has been the go-to sandwich shop around these parts for years. Its Italian is fairly unorthodox, but it would be a cardinal sin to exclude it from this list. The Serious Sandwich, as it's listed, features salami, two types of ham, a double dose of cheese,  cheddar and provolone, along with the usual array of vegetables and black olives. The thing that makes this beast unique is the bread: a large, flat loaf that's a close cousin to the sort of bread you'd typically find in a muffuletta-style sandwich. It's a San Antonio classic you have to try at least once. (Two locations) 1554 Babcock Road, 210-684-6555; 8800 Broadway, Suite 108, 210-826-4793, zitosdeli.net