The same thing happened to us over Christmas week. They didn't let any of us in until a few minutes after 8. Not sure what was going on that day, but there were tons of security, police officers and K-9s all over the park. .
We were seated around 810 (I had a twisted ankle so it took us while to get there - relieved we had Garden Grill instead of our normal PPO breakfast at Akershus); we met all the characters 2x, ordered some extra food, finished our meal and were riding Soarin before 9am.
Just be sure to pay for your meal early on. That way you don't have to wait for the check after you have finished your meal and are anxious to get to Soarin before the crowds.