Rethinking my ADR for Hollywood & Vine breakfast...suggestions?

[MinnieMama09]

Hi all,
We are taking our first WDW trip Jan. 2-6 and have the s/p/d deal so we are on the DDP and staying at POR. I made 3 ADRs during our stay (CP lunch, H&V breakfast, and CRT breakfast on our last morning. But after reading several "not so great" reviews of Hollywood & Vine, I'm thinking maybe I should change it. We wanted to take advantage of the character meals (as you can see ) since its a favorite of our kids (DD3, DD6) and they like the DisJr characters, but now I'm not sure if that is the best choice. We do not have PH, so first day in the parks is Thurs. at MK, Fri. at HS, Sat. at Epcot (most likely), and then Sun. morning back at MK for our CRT breakfast and a few rides before we leave to drive home.

All that to say, what would be another option for a good character meal on either Friday or Saturday? I've been checking online and there are still a lot of options of times for any time of day for a lot of character meals around WDW resort. Because I'm not familiar with the resorts and how convenient it is to get around, I wasn't sure what would work with our park schedule and staying at POR. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[MaxsDad]

I have a breakfast ADR for H&V but it isn't for the food it is for the characters. With a couple of exceptions I don't think there are really any good character meals, especially when you are considering the buffets they are all pretty much the same. I have heard (trying it for our first time on upcoming trip) Tusker house is good, but that doesn't fit in your schedule.

Some options based on your schedule are:
Epcot: Akershus Princesses in Norway, personally if you already have CRT, I wouldn't do this.
Garden Grill with Chip n Dale. Family Style Dinner only.

I think that is it for epcot, and I don't think there is anything else in DHS for characters except for H&V.

Other options however could be restaurants on the monorail, this would require you to leave epcot (and for such a short trip I don't think I would advise that) but it would give you more options. Also if you will have a car you could obviously drive and that could help.

Contemporary: Chef Mickeys,It is a buffet so likely the same type of food as H&V. The only one on this list I have been to, we enjoyed it, but I wouldn't switch H&V for Chef Mickey because they are both buffets.
Ohanaolynesian with Lilo and Stich
Grand Floridian: 1900 Park Fare Alice, Mary Poppins

Finally you could do a boardwalk resort with characters because that is also walking distance from epcot, and a boat ride from DHS.
Cape May: Donald and gang.

Hope this helps and hopefully others can add some info, personally I would keep H&V if those characters are important to you.

 

[MinnieMama09]

MaxsDad, that is extremely helpful! Like you mentioned, because we are only able to do a short trip this first time, the convenience factor is important...especially considering I have no idea where anything is! I feel a little better about sticking with our choice at H&V, but will look at Cape May, that could be a good option for us too! Thanks again! Now I have a good list too for our next trip!

 

[ilovevacation]

I agree with sticking with h+v but i think it is worth looking at some of the other resort options. For example, we had chef Mickey breakfast at 705 (first bus is at 630) and you will be done in an hour. You can take the monorail or bus from there and you will be ready for your day and won't require you leaving the park. Same is true for ohana and cape may (minus the monorail). There is lots of great options and you won't go wrong. Have a great trip!

 

[MaxsDad]

I agree with sticking with h+v but i think it is worth looking at some of the other resort options. For example, we had chef Mickey breakfast at 705 (first bus is at 630) and you will be done in an hour. You can take the monorail or bus from there and you will be ready for your day and won't require you leaving the park. Same is true for ohana and cape may (minus the monorail). There is lots of great options and you won't go wrong. Have a great trip!

I was thinking the same thing about the breakfast but saw that they were driving so I assumed they were driving to the parks.

Definitely a good plan though.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Most of the bad H&V reviews I've seen have been for lunch and dinner. We had breakfast there last summer and it was on par with Crystal Palace. It was a tasty meal, great service and awesome character interaction.

 

[denneg]

Most of the bad H&V reviews I've seen have been for lunch and dinner. We had breakfast there last summer and it was on par with Crystal Palace. It was a tasty meal, great service and awesome character interaction.

I totally agree. We actually preferred the breakfast to Chef Mickeys, the food is about the same, but the character interaction and staff are better at H&V. Our son is a huge Disney Jr fan, and we are going at least 3 times next week, primarily for the character interaction. I'd say stick with it if your kids are Dis Jr fans! If they like the other characters mor, switch, but don't do it based on food.

 

[crabbygal902]

FWIW, I wish I had planned for the H & V breakfast when DS7 was young enough to enjoy those characters. There is a small window for Disney Jr. Mickey and friends are "cool" much longer.

 

[Iadoreeeyore]

We are heading to Disney in a month and have a breakfast reservation at H & V as well. I was leary about keeping it due to all the mixed reviews I have seen on here but my son absolutely LOVES the DisJr characters so I am thinking that trumps the actual food quality. It would be different if characters like Special agent Oso were readily available in the parks but HS is the only park that has him. When I spoke to a CM in May when we were there last they said that is the only place Oso really makes an appearance in. I also agree with a PP that Cape May has great Character interactions and good food. Good Luck and have a great time no matter where you chose to dine!!

 

[crazybones27]

We have a reservation next week for H&V breakfast. I didn't have it booked originally until the week before last our 3yr old son asked to eat with Oso and Jake. I couldn't believe he remembered them, but since our last visit here was lunch I figured we'd try breakfast. For me it's hard to screw up a Mickey Waffle lol. Just as long as I have waffles and fruit I'm a happy camper and the kids will be happy with the characters .

 

[peterpansflight]

I have ressies on 11/19 for breakfast. I will try to let you know how it goes. We are going to see Jake (my nephew's favorite disney jr. character)! Going with the mindset that breakfast will be better than the lunch and He will enjoy the characters. After all, they are only little for a short amount of time, and if he is super excited over the characters, that is all that matters.

 

[debbiembyrdrowan]

Garden grill if u can get it! I liked h&v as much as tusker....mostly same buffet friendly food. Both are more about the characters. My favorite breakfast is ohana!!

 

[debidigidelights]

I too have mixed feelings on the reviews for HV. I have a late lunch ADR there, so maybe I ought to change it. So not necessary for a character meal, just a nice sit down meal in studios for 4 adults and 1 12yr old. Any suggestions?

or I cold got for quick in Studios and do Table service in MK on another day. Rest of the week set up ok and happy with the selections.

 

[Magic2000]

We're also doing lunch at H&V. My granddaughter LOVES Jake and I can't wait to see when she meets him!!! We're doing an 11:00 lunch, so hopefully, the food will be good and hot!

 

[garjanjones]

We had breakfast there last summer and it was fine. Most of the bad reviews have been from lunch and supper.

 

[debbiembyrdrowan]

We found that H&V was loud. I really didn't find the food much different than the other buffets.

 

[meggiebeth]

I too have mixed feelings on the reviews for HV. I have a late lunch ADR there, so maybe I ought to change it. So not necessary for a character meal, just a nice sit down meal in studios for 4 adults and 1 12yr old. Any suggestions?

or I cold got for quick in Studios and do Table service in MK on another day. Rest of the week set up ok and happy with the selections.

Mama Melrose is quite nice. SciFi Dine-In is IMO awful- we hated it. If you had a dinner ADR at Mama Melrose you'd get reserved seating for Fantasmic! which is quite a good idea.

Personally, I don't think the dining options in DHS are that good in comparison to MK. I would probably have CS in DHS and eat in a TS in MK instead- or an MK resort.

Have you considered getting the boat from DHS to the Boarwalk and Epcot area resorts? Beaches and Cream could be a good option and quite low priced for Disney. There's also Captain's Grille.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[peterpansflight]

Hi! We just returned from a fabulous vacation! Just wanted to let u know that we ate breakfast at H&V on Monday, Nov 19. Your children will truly enjoy the atmosphere and interaction with the characters. Every 10 minutes they have dancing with the characters in the middle of the restaurant. My nephew had a blast. The food was not that bad either. We actually enjoyed the selection. There is an omelet station that they recently added. Cooked to order. I would recommend H&V if your little ones like those characters. Hope you have a magical time at the Happiest Place on Earth!!!

 

[Disney Vegas Couple]

We were there last month and enjoyed breakfast at H&V, Cape May, Chef Mickeys and Ohana. Enjoyed Ohana the most but all were quite good. We do not have kids but enjoy the experience of watching the faces of the little ones when the characters come by. If you have a reservation for H&V before the park opens, get there extra early as you have to line up at the park gate to check in for the restaurant. We recommend keeping H&V reservation and watch the kid's smiles get bigger and bigger with all the character interaction.