Why this table sign earns its place
A reserved sign is a booking made visible. Put it down when the table is laid and walk-ins seat themselves elsewhere, runners know not to clear it into the turn, and the party that booked at seven finds the table waiting instead of occupied. That only works if the sign is unmistakable from a distance, which is what the tent fold buys: it stands upright on its own footprint with no holder or base, so it reads from across the room rather than lying flat where a passing guest sees nothing. At 120 × 40 mm it holds the table without burying the setting underneath it.
Stainless steel earns its place through the number of times this sign gets handled. It goes out at the start of service, comes off as the party sits, gets dropped in a station tray and goes back out for the next sitting — often several times a night, every night. Card sags and marks under that treatment; steel takes the knocks, wipes down with the tabletop and stays presentable in front of the guests who are looking straight at it while they wait. Keep a run of them at the host station with the booking sheet so laying up a reservation is one movement, and the room reads correctly before the doors open.
