What is the incentive to give good service?
Keeping your job. Just like any other retail job.
This so much. I don't know why people apply for serving positions when they'll give bad service because they know (or have a hunch) that a patron won't tip. That's just wrong.
It's also wrong that the US Fed Gov't treats servers with a crappy minimum wage, but is it also right for servers to expect their patrons to provide a living for them?
You guys should do something about this. Send a letter to your governors or mayors or whatever.