It's become increasingly common for restaurants to charge customers' credit cards even before they step foot into an establishment, let alone order food or drinks. 

Referred to as a "reservation fee" and applied at the time of booking, the charge ranges in amount but inevitably peeves diners who don't want to be on the hook for what can add up to hundreds of dollars, if their dinner plans — for, say, a party of four — change at the last minute. But that is precisely why restaurants are increasingly implementing the fees. 

Operating on razor-thin margins, restaurants can suffer financially if a large party decides on a whim not to show up for a booking. While charging $25 or so a head for no-shows doesn't make operators whole in the event of a last-minute cancellation, it does help them soften the blow. The fees also encourage guests to honor their plans. The rise of restaurant reservation platforms including OpenTable, Resy and others, also make it easy to collect and manage customers' credit card information.