Polar Star Capital Partners, Salt Lake City, Utah, purchased a controlling interest in Meridian Restaurants Unlimited, the Ogden, Utah-based owner of the Burger King franchise system.

The majority of Burger King restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees. Meridian Restaurants operates 114 Burger King restaurants, and recently acquired 10 Chili's restaurants and two El Pollo Loco stores. The transaction also included capital outlay to support the acquisition of an additional 25 existing Burger King restaurants in the Kansas and Nebraska markets (Horizon Food Service, Inc) and area rights and benefits in eight western states.

"We are thrilled to be partnering with one of the best operators in the industry in David Harper. David has a demonstrated track record of growing a successful franchisee and developing and managing profitable stores within multiple restaurant concepts. He has created a culture of team members who operate at a very high level and focus on doing business the right way," says James Winder, founder of Polar Star Capital Partners.

"We are excited to be working with Polar Star Capital Partners, which brings outstanding board level advisory, accelerated growth support and financial expertise to bear on the next chapter of the development of our company," adds David Harper, founder of Meridian.