Read the statement more closely: you can either tackle this problem by raising wages, or by reducing the financial and logistical burden of commuting (or both!). Manhattan isn't a good example for your case: millions of people (like myself) commute cheaply and easily into the borough each day to work.

> Being able to live in Manhattan on waiter's earnings is wishful thinking.

That's factually untrue and kind of an absurd statement. Of course people live in Manhattan working as servers.

Solely on the salary of a server?

A server can make $100-$500 per shift in tips, 4-5 shifts per week. On the low end, that's probably not enough even for a roommate situation. But in the medium-to-high end, that can easily cover a studio apartment.