"5 guests or more..."

bsb150's Rating

I just tried to make a reservation for 5 guests and was informed that they would require a completed cc form to confirm the reservation.
It was emailed to me by the 'reservation assistant' who stated that she had "provisionally" reserved a table for me and that if they had not received the completed form within 48 hours it would be canceled.
In the event that we didn't show up, $50.00/person would be charged to my credit card. It also stated that a 20% gratuity would be added to the bill.
This is my first experience with a cc request at a restaurant (maybe I'm overreacting), but for 5 or more... it seems a bit arbitrary. Why not for every reservation? What's the difference when a group of 4 doesn't show up?
I haven't even eaten there, and yet they've left a bad taste in my mouth.