Marica

Christopher Cheung has been a marker on California's culinary landscape for 20 years. Christopher's Cafe was part of the movement that, in the '80s, transformed Solano Avenue into a kind of Foodie Way. Restaurant locations and names have shifted over time, but Cheung's signature was and is unpretentious quality. While Marica strives for a sophisticated audience, Cheung has no attitude. In fact, he runs Christopher's Burger, right next door. (Nicholas Boer/Contra Costa Times)