No it wasn't any of those three places. I was selling over $60, probably more like $150 an hour around rush, but you realize servers aren't the only step in the process, and most places share wages. Also, people don't always tip at all. This was a big problem where I worked. We were number one in the state on server friendliness, helpfulness, etc, but I was still going home with about $3 a night atop state minimum wage. That's after an 8 hour shift.
I don't know what kind of restaurant you were working at, but it certainly wan't an Applebees. Yea I realize that servers aren't the only people getting a cut of those tips, I have about twenty years in the service industry. I spent about four soul crushing years FOH/BOH/trainer/occasional new store opener, in multiple states at a restaurant along Applebees lines. It wasn't the best money, but it wasn't bad, it certainly was more then ten dollars and hour. This girl is either full of shit on the nine dollars an hour or she was a horrible server. I don't know what kind of place you had stealing your money and calling itself your job, but it certainly wasn't a painfully efficient well run operations like an Applebees.