Finding a Restaurant on Monday Night

My partner and I needed a break from the heat, from working at home and from Papa Murphy's Delight pizzas. (We pick them up often when we're too tired or lazy to cook and don't feel like going out to brave the crowds.) When was the last time you tried to find a restaurant that was OPEN on Monday night around here? We had several in mind, Bernie's, Lolo, Belly, and a couple more, all unfortunately closed on Monday.
We ended up at a nice looking place called Soluna off NE Fremont. People sitting outside, sipping wine and eating, a shady side of the street, large windows, and the tree lined parking lot was full. We were greeted at the door by the young bus boy who held the door for us, something I have always appreciated and a courtesy that I'm afforded more and more the older I get.
The restaurant was bustling, the waiters sweating. We were seated in a corner by the bar. Our waiter (the bartender) came shortly, a thin guy with tatoo covered arms and dark rimmed glasses, to pour water and drop off the menus.
The first thing I noticed, which may seem inconsequential to some, was the chair. It was actually BIG and had soft padding and a high back. Very comfortable. I'm so used to sitting down into these rickety, cheap things that wobble and are hard on my buns.
Next the menu... seemed like some interesting options. Our waiter stopped by seeming a little hurried and not too happy, but at least polite. He doesn't even crack a smile when I order us two "giant" Lemondrops.  The drinks come in short order, but alas, nothing giant about them or even remotely large, still, just the right blend of tart, sweet and vodka. We are happy. I order the Artichoke and Goat Cheese Tart with Sun Dried Tomato and Kalamata Tapenade and Crostini, and the Spinach Salad with Pancetta Vinagrette, Cranberries and Apple. My partner orders Two Layer Gazpacho and Romaine Salad topped with Grilled Chicken Breast.
Well here comes the review part. Plates? Somewhat interesting but didn't grab me. Kind of messy really. Tastes? Ok. I just wasn't "wowed" by anything. The goat cheese tart wasn't really a tart as I was expecting. It was nice, pretty on the plate, a little bit too much lemon, but rich and tasty just the same. Sort of a mushed up goat cheese patty with a coating of something resembling panko. There was about a teaspoon of tapenade on the plate and the crostini were so crunchy I think they must have been made last week and toasted again. I happen to like mine just a little crunchy around the edges and chewy in the middle so it doesn't seem like I'm biting down on a mouth full of pebbles.
My spinach salad was good. A balance of salty, sweet and sour with the spinach and not soggy with dressing. Romaine salad was a little hard to find under the chicken breast, only a few tiny hints of green poking out from under the chicken. I mean how much does a head of Romaine cost these days?? My partner and I both felt the gazpacho left something to be desired.
The waiter took off with our wine list as soon as our meal came, and we kept trying to eyeball him to come back so we could order a glass with dinner but no luck. We gave up after we each had two bites of dinner left and decided we had wine at home to satisfy our thirst if necessary.

All in all in my dining experience scale of 1 to 10, I'd give Soluna about a 6. The prices were good. Just nothing surprising or spectacular about either food, service or presentation. I'm not panning the place, it was a pleasant find on a hot Monday evening when most of our favorite neighborhood restaurants are closed. They were busy and I take that into account too. I would definitely try it again. My photo really doesn't do the place justice, but I'll include one anyway.