I’ll bite: Arkansas (and probably some other states that I’m less aware of)
It’s an old law from the westward expansion days which says that any establishment that sells food and/or drink is not allowed to charge for the serving of water itself. Some businesses get around this by automatically upcharging for a larger size than their “standard” drink serving size (read: anything beyond “small”), or by charging for the cup, but the vast majority still follow the spirit of the law and don’t charge for water because of the cultural momentum.
You’re still right, though. There are costs associated with acquiring and maintaining a supply of potable water, so this law effectively forces businesses to eat the cost of the water they serve to customers. However, that’s such a small percentage of a restaurant’s water use that it’s trivial to cover by other means.
I’ll bite: Arkansas (and probably some other states that I’m less aware of)
It’s an old law from the westward expansion days which says that any establishment that sells food and/or drink is not allowed to charge for the serving of water itself. Some businesses get around this by automatically upcharging for a larger size than their “standard” drink serving size (read: anything beyond “small”), or by charging for the cup, but the vast majority still follow the spirit of the law and don’t charge for water because of the cultural momentum.
You’re still right, though. There are costs associated with acquiring and maintaining a supply of potable water, so this law effectively forces businesses to eat the cost of the water they serve to customers. However, that’s such a small percentage of a restaurant’s water use that it’s trivial to cover by other means.