[pcthrowaway]

I waited tables for years in the Southern U.S., now I live in Canada.

I find that service is highly regional even in the U.S., but as a whole, better than service in Canada.

I also think that Canadians making at least minimum wage with tips on top plays into that. In the U.S. you'd have to provide great service or you risked not making any money (technically I know your employers are supposed to top you up to minimum wage, but they do it for the pay period rather than an individual shift)