Critic's Notebook: Beso

S. Irene Virbila braved the trendy Hollywood scene to check out the Eva Longoria/Todd English experiment, and while her first look is almost entirely devoid of any real criticism, there are a few discrepancies: "The entrance is so discreet, you may not have noticed the new restaurant at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Ivar Street..." (the giant Beso scripted on both sides of the door might be a giveaway). "The open kitchen is carved out of the space -- deeper than it is wide -- with whole fish, lobsters and other seafood displayed on ice..." (that's the ceviche bar; the real kitchen is in the back). "You can taste her recipe for tortilla soup, which is comforting and a little wimpy on the firepower..." (definitely not the same soup we tasted last weekend). Place your bets on whether we'll see a full starred review in the future. [LAT]