Levy Acquisition orders up some Mexican with $500 acquisition of California's Del Taco

Del Taco is being acquired in a deal valued at about $500 million by a Chicago acquisitions and merger company.

The Mexican-American restaurant chain was founded in 1964 in Southern California and has 550 locations in 15 states. It is based in Lake Forest, California, south of Los Angeles. It recorded $656.1 million in sales last year, according to the company.

The buyer, Levy Acquisition Corp., will change its name to Del Taco Restaurants Inc., and run the chain as a subsidiary. Levy will continue to be listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

Levy Acquisition is a blank check company created for purposes such as mergers, acquisitions and business combinations. Its Chairman and CEO is restaurant veteran Lawrence Levy. Levy Acquisition became a public company in November 2013.

Levy will become Del Taco's chairman . Del Taco's management, including CEO Paul J.B. Murphy and Chief Financial Officer Steven Brake will continue to run the restaurant once the deal closes.

Levy Acquisition shareholders must still approve the deal, which is expected to close in June.