Everyone’s doing work at these places…
AI Overview says this.
Servers get tips
because they often earn a lower hourly wage (sometimes below minimum wage) and provide direct, personalized customer service, making tips a crucial part of their income, while cooks generally earn a higher hourly wage, closer to standard minimum wage, and their work is less directly visible to the customer, though some restaurants share tips with kitchen staff. The system is rooted in tradition, with servers’ wages subsidized by customers to offset low base pay, shifting the responsibility from the business.
Today that’s good enough for me.