Each Saturday night, bar-goers exiting Palacio de Cumbia are greeted by the smell of hot tacos wafting from Raul Campos' mobile taco bar, El Forastero.

Campos and his wife Christina, who live in Rochester, have made a business out of hauling a portable taco stand from town to town, hitting the hot spots in places like Mankato and Glenville.

Saturday night is Austin's turn when Campos takes advantage of appetites worked up from a long night of dancing.

"Every Saturday that I've been there, I get more customers," he said. "Everyone that comes gives me a lot of support."

Campos has been running the business in Austin for about three months and said the response has been great.

His food is authentic Mexican, but with space limitations, his menu has to be basic. It's tacos only with a choice of two styles of meat. However, the quality is what makes the food popular, he said.

He special-orders his corn tortilla shells, which are smaller than the American variety, and his meat is the very best, he said.

The food has earned him the distinguished title El Rey de Taco from some of his customers.

"They're starting to call me the Taco King," he said. "They say, 'Hey, Taco King!' So now I've got a nickname."

For some of his fans, one day a week is not enough.

"A lot of people ask me, 'Why don't you have a restaurant here or there, wherever I am. But I say, if I have a restaurant, the interest will go down," he said. "I'd be in the same area all the time, so it's nothing new. That's the point, that you have something different."

Campos got the idea sitting in the park one day about five years ago. He watched people having picnics and thought it would be nice to be able to eat restaurant-quality food in the park. The hardest part of setting up the business was figuring out what licenses were necessary and acquiring those licenses. Once he got that taken care of, he took his shop on the road.

Campos said wherever he goes, people are interested in his set-up. Children often want pictures next to the shop.

"When I come in the afternoon, the kids come over and say, 'Oh, what you got?' It's like it's a picnic," he said.

Campos is originally from Meoqui, Chihuahua, Mexico, but he has been in America for a long time. He has more than 20 years experience working in kitchens at Mexican and Chinese restaurants. He said that experience has helped him become successful.

He said he is not trying to move in on Austin businesses. Early closing times at other places in town create a need for late-night dining options, and his mobility allows him to take advantage of this unique business opportunity, he said.

He usually sets up Saturday evenings at 7 p.m. in front of Palacio de Cumbia, near the corner of Second Street NE and Third Avenue NE, and stays open until 1 a.m. But even the early-to-bed types will get a chance to try out his tacos. Campos will have a stand at the Mower County Fair this year, with an expanded menu of 20 different items.

He hopes by limiting access to his stand to once a week, he can keep the interest level high.

"The people, they like it. They come to see me every week," he said. "If you do one day, the people get more excited for you to come again."

Matt Merritt can be reached at 434-2214 or by e-mail at matt.merritt@austindailyherald.com