Look at it this way. If tips + $2.13 an hour < minimum wage for the hours you worked then your pay check will have whatever amount will get you to minimum wage. I believe it’s per pay period. If you’re in a 2$ an hour state and getting money in your paycheck it’s time to find a new restaurant.

So if I get a $1000 tip five minutes into the shift it applies for the next two weeks?

IIRC, whatever the pay period is. I would need to ask an old manager if the week or pay period matters. Could be per week.

It’s so rare in the $2 an hour states. I worked at Chili’s during the worst parts of the recession and never made a paycheck. Once the economy picked up I went to greener pastures.