My daughter (7 years old) and I had a PPO ADR at H&V last Monday (4/9/18) and I'm happy to report our recent experience. Our goals in booking this breakfast were to start a long day of touring with a good breakfast, sign up for JTA with our pick of time slots, meet Sofia and Doc (my daughter didn't really care about Jake or Manny), and be in a good position at RD to ride TSM before lines got out of control. This day was supposed to be the first day that TSM would be down to one track and have no FPs, so this last goal was definitely a priority since we definitely wanted to ride but did not want to suffer a potentially multi-hour wait later in the day. [As it turned out, they postponed the shutdown of the second track and there were 2 tracks and SD FPs available all week, but none of us knew that at the time.] We were very satisfied with our experience.
Monday was our first day in the parks, and we planned to spend the morning at HS before park hopping to AK before lunchtime. Our original goal was to ride TSM, RnRC (2x), ToT (2x), and Star Tours and also for my daughter to do JTA. On the eve of the trip, my daughter decided she was no longer interested in JTA, but I didn't know if that would stick come game time. We arrived in the HS parking lot around 7:20 AM and there was very little activity (nor had there been a CM at the parking entrance). I had misplaced my AP, so I stopped at the one open ticket window to get it replaced. Turns out that took less than a minute, so we then continued on to the taps. The line to the far left was for PPO ADRs, and we got in line behind the only 2 other people there. Around 7:30 a CM came out with a tablet to confirm that everyone in our line did, in fact, have an early dining reservation. Those that didn't were sent to line up at the other taps and told they would not be let in until at least 8:30.
At about 7:50 they began letting our line through the taps. We had been chatting with the folks ahead of us for several minutes at this point, so we walked to H&V together and were the first to arrive and check-in. I confirmed with my daughter that she did not want to do JTA and she stuck to her guns. There were multiple CMs in the area who were directing guests to JTA signup and encouraging guests to do so before breakfast in order to have first choice of slots.
Our new friends from line were called in first right at 8AM, and then we were called right after them and shown to our table. We placed our drink orders and then proceeded to the buffet. The spread had a nice variety of hot and cold foods. If you have done a breakfast buffet at Disney before, it is pretty much what you would expect. There was nothing that surprised me, good or bad. Service was nice, with our server checking in a few times to refill drinks, check on us, and accommodate my request to settle the check early so we would not be delayed after we finished eating. Our table was right next to the start of the buffet and we each made multiple trips through and fueled up.
I was pleasantly surprised that the characters started coming around to the tables right away (rather than waiting until 8:30 like Akershus, for example). Sofia and Doc came first within a few minutes of each other, and both took time to interact with my daughter and pose for photos. Jake came by a few minutes later and did the same. My daughter was genuinely indifferent towards Handy Manny ("I've barely heard of that guy", which I thought was a funny thing for a 7 year old to say about a cartoon character), so we didn't bother waiting for him. I'm sure it would have just been a few more minutes, but getting in front of the RD crowd was a priority for us.
We exited H&V at 8:35 and were the first non-CMs out on Hollywood Blvd. The CMs showed us to the RD "starting line" and told us that TSM was experiencing some technical difficulties and would be opening late (hopefully by 9:15 or 9:30). We were able to see the crowds behind us coming through the taps, and soon a mass of humanity emerged through the entrance and descended upon us. There were definitely some grumbles when the CMs repeated the news about TSM. It was clear that the overwhelming majority, with no FPs available at that time and in anticipation of the single tracking, were there to go to TSM first.
A few minutes before 9 the CMs lined up and showed the crowd which CMs to follow for each ride. We were at the front of the crowd and followed the CMs headed to TSM. They walked briskly enough that there was lots of fast walking and jockeying for position around us. We allowed the most aggressive to pass us, but were still among the first 25 guests or so by the time we got in line. They held us outside until the technical issues were resolved. At 9:15 they announced the ride would be opening and within a minute or two we had our 3D glasses and were firing away. By the time we exited, the standby line was huge and waits were posted at 60 minutes (I heard it quieted down later in the day, and was certainly better for most of the rest of the week).
Overall, we really enjoyed our breakfast at H&V. We had a hearty meal to start the day, met the characters my daughter wanted, and were able to be at the front of the crowd at RD. Happy to answer any questions anyone might have, but I'd recommend it if you want to get up early and have a great start to your day at HS without losing any park time.
