Why not install ipads in the tables and do away with waiters? All one needs are food runners. Pay them normal working rates so no tips needed, even for them.
Yeah tablets will be great at providing anything other than dry facts about the food.
At least 40-50% of the times I go out to eat I have just a vague idea what I want and it is up to the waiter to match my desires with the menu.
Just to prevent shrieks from the chefs that lurk here - I never do special requests on the tickets but sometimes a person needs a guidance trough the menu.
You are describing a very high end dining experience.
In most restaurants the server "recommends" the highest margin item (bonus commission) or whatever they like or is easier for their friends in the back to prepare. It's dinner, not a bespoke ball gown.
This will probably happen eventually for lower end places. Middle and higher end places I suspect already rely on service staff to differentiate themselves. Either by being friendly, helpful, and knowledgable, or by being a draw for other reasons. I'm sure you can think of at least one restaurant in your area renowned for it's young, attractive, flirty female staff. People who dine out are often doing so for a chance to socialize a bit... talk about wine with a knowledgable waiter, etc. not just dink around on an iPad.
I experienced this at a sushi place in Japan, before iPads or even modern smartphones existed. Each table had a touch screen device where you could browse the hundred our so different pieces. We would select what we wanted and a waiter brought it a couple of minutes later. When we were finished the waiter swiped each stack of empty plates with an RFID scanner to determine the price for each person. One could also order from a regular paper menu or pick plates from a conveyor belt.
