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Sweet Afton, the new pub from the team behind Bua and Wilfie & Nell held a tasting for friends and family last night and is due to soft-open sometime between now and its grand opening, on August 30. There will be draft beers, what the owners believe to be Astoria’s first cask-ale option (one of the owners, Ruairi Curtin, is a longtime Astoria resident, so he should know), fresh-fruit cocktails such as a spicy cherry margarita, and pub grub from chef P.J. Calapa, who happens to be a regular at Bua. As with Wilfie & Nell, the purveyors are highlighted on the menu: The meat is from Pat La Frieda or Butchers Block of Sunnyside, the cheese is from Murray’s, the breads are from Rollo Mio of Maspeth, and the beer-battered fried pickles are from none other than Bob McClure. The bar’s designer is also a Bua habitué — truly a family affair! And again as with Wilfie & Nell, there are no reservations and the seating is communal — but this time, there’s a back garden. Check out the menu, below.

As the allure of cartography grows, so does the Man’s interest. The NYPD issued seven summonses today against food carts parked near the Metropolitan Museum of Art because vendors “positioned their carts beyond the curb line,” the police told City Room. One cart, operated by a 40-year-old veteran, was shut down for having the wrong type of food permit. But consider this statement from the Met: “As visitors have been reporting to us by phone, and in letters and e-mails, they are finding it increasingly difficult to enter the building, and almost impossible to exit at the end of the day.” Did the museum call the fuzz?

Police Crack Down on Food Vendors [City Room/NYT]
Earlier: Is Your Favorite Food Cart Legit?

Eater reports that Stephen Starr once again dined at Lucali pizzeria in Brooklyn, which he had previously visited on his pizza tasting escapade as part of his research dining for his upcoming pizzeria, Stella. A tipster told the site that Starr and his band of merry henchmen apparently "begged" head pizza maker Mark Iacono to hop on the Stephen Starr-sponsored NYC-to-Philly gravy train so many fellow New York chefs have ridden before him (Marcus Samuelsson, Paul Liebrandt, Masaharu Morimoto, Alfred Portale, Douglas Rodriguez). Iacono apparently declined, despite the lure of being presented with multiple Starr gift cards. We know times are tough, Stephen, but maybe he'd prefer to be paid in cash for his services?

Stephen Starr Wants His Own Lucali in Philly [Eater]

Dunkin’ Donuts really, really has to stop. The last straw might’ve been when we saw a Dunkin’ smack in the middle of the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, New Jersey — a conspicuously polished corporate entity where a homespun, deep-fried chili-burger stand should’ve been. But this is also insane: a street vendor in Tribeca who’s hoping to subliminally lure in customers with that all-too-familiar font. Dude, don’t encourage them!