Menu Engineering Perth: The Decoy Dish Strategy for Restaurants

What Is the Decoy Effect in Menu Engineering?

The decoy effect—also known as asymmetric dominance—is one of the most powerful psychological principles in menu engineering. It’s a pricing and positioning strategy used by successful Perth restaurants to guide customers toward high-margin dishes without feeling manipulated.

Here’s how it works: When customers compare two options, adding a third “decoy” option that’s clearly inferior to one (but not the other) makes the superior option appear dramatically more attractive. The decoy isn’t designed to sell—it’s designed to make your target dish look like the obvious choice.

A simple example: Imagine a wine bar offering two steaks:

• Option A (Target): Scotch Fillet with truffle butter, seasonal vegetables, and house-made chips — $48
• Option B: Scotch Fillet with seasonal vegetables — $44

Many customers would choose Option B to save $4. But add a decoy:

• Option C (Decoy): Scotch Fillet with seasonal vegetables (smaller portion) — $46

Now Option A suddenly looks like exceptional value—only $2 more than the decoy for significantly more food and a premium addition. Research shows this simple shift can move 30-50% of customers from the cheaper option to the target.

When customers compare the decoy to your target dish, the target appears significantly better value, making it the obvious choice. Research in behavioural economics shows that decoys can shift customer preferences by up to 50% toward the intended option. For Perth venues—from Fremantle seafood restaurants like Ciccerello’s (using tiered fisherman’s baskets) to premium Subiaco dining spots like Lulu La Delizia (using pasta portion sizing) or Northbridge nightlife venues like Mechanics Institute—this isn’t just theory. It’s a proven sales tool.

The “Shared Plates” Decoy Trend in Perth

With Perth’s dining scene heavily shifting toward “feed me” menus and shared plates (especially in Leederville and Highgate), the decoy effect has evolved. Venues now use a “standard” shared banquet ($65pp) as a decoy for the “premium” chef’s selection ($85pp). By pricing them close together but stacking value in the premium option (adding an extra protein course or a welcome drink), the higher price point becomes the “smart” choice for groups.

How Professional Photography Amplifies the Decoy Effect

A decoy only works if customers perceive the difference in value clearly. That’s where professional food photography becomes your secret weapon. A stunning, professionally lit image of your target dish next to a modestly styled decoy creates a visual contrast that makes the superiority of the target unmistakable—even before reading the description or price.

Consider these photographic techniques that maximise the decoy effect:

1. Lighting That Separates Heroes from Decoys

Use soft, directional light on your target dish to make it look vibrant, textured, and appetising. The sauce glistens, the edges caramelise beautifully, and the steam catches the light. Light the decoy with flatter, less dramatic illumination—still professional, but noticeably less dynamic. This subtle difference subconsciously signals which dish is the premium choice.

Technical approach: For the target, we use a key light at 45° with a reflector for fill, creating depth and dimension. For the decoy, we flatten the lighting ratio, removing the visual drama while keeping it clean.

2. Composition That Guides the Eye

Place your target dish in the foreground with a shallow depth of field (f/2.8-4), letting the decoy recede slightly out of focus in the background. This compositional hierarchy tells customers where to look—and subconsciously, what to order.

On your menu layout, position the target photo prominently, using larger dimensions and prime placement (upper right quadrant, where eyes naturally rest). The decoy can have a smaller image or no image at all.

3. Styling That Highlights Value

Add visual cues to your target dish that signal premium quality: a drizzle of glossy sauce, a scatter of microgreens, artisanal salt flakes, a branded butter pat, an interesting serving vessel. Leave the decoy plainer—still appetising, but clearly simpler.

These styling choices reinforce the perceived gap in quality and justify the price difference in a way that words alone cannot.

When we shoot for Perth restaurants and cafés across Northbridge, Fremantle, Subiaco, and the CBD, we plan every image with these psychological principles in mind. The goal isn’t just to make food look good—it’s to make your most profitable dishes look irresistible compared to strategic alternatives.

Professional photography creates visual contrast that makes the target dish (left) appear significantly more premium than the decoy (right)—justifying the price difference.

Implementing the Decoy Dish Strategy in Your Perth Venue

Ready to put the decoy effect to work in your restaurant, café, or bar? Follow this four-step process:

Step 1: Identify Your High-Margin “Star” Dishes

Use your sales data to find dishes with the highest profit margins—these are your targets. In menu engineering terms, these are your “Stars” (high profitability, high popularity) or “Puzzles” (high profitability, low popularity). Puzzles, in particular, benefit most from the decoy strategy because they need a sales boost.

How to calculate dish margin:

Focus on dishes with margins above 65% for the decoy strategy. If you haven’t yet analysed your menu profitability, our article on menu engineering for Perth venues walks you through the full process of categorising your menu items.

Step 2: Design a Strategic Decoy

Create a dish that is similar in price to your target but offers noticeably less value. The decoy should be:

• Priced 5-15% below your target dish (not too far, or the comparison weakens)
• Clearly inferior in portion size, sides, cooking method, or premium ingredients
• Plausible—customers might still order it (some will, and that’s fine—it should still be profitable)
• Easy to compare—same category (both steaks, both pasta, both burgers)

Example decoy designs:

• Same protein, fewer sides or smaller portion
• Same dish without a premium sauce, cheese, or topping
• Same dish with a simpler cooking method (grilled vs sous-vide)
• Same cocktail without the premium spirit upgrade

Step 3: Photograph the Pair with Intent

Shoot the target and decoy together (or in matching conditions) using the lighting, composition, and styling techniques described above. The visual contrast should be obvious even at a glance—customers should instantly perceive which dish is the “better” option.

Critical point: Both dishes must look appetising. The decoy shouldn’t look bad—that would damage your brand. It should simply look less impressive than the target.

If you need professional help achieving this balance, our Perth food photography services specialise in menu engineering imagery designed to drive sales.

Step 4: Place the Pair Strategically on Your Menu

Position the target and decoy next to each other on your menu, with the target listed first. Use the professional photo of the target dish as a visual anchor. Consider:

• Larger image for the target, smaller or no image for the decoy
• Descriptive, appetising copy for the target; minimal description for the decoy
• Visual callouts on the target: “Chef’s Recommendation,” “Our Most Popular,” or a subtle star icon
• Upper-right placement—eye-tracking studies show this is the “sweet spot” where attention naturally rests

This placement reinforces the visual and value hierarchy you’ve created through pricing and photography.

Case Study: A Northbridge Wine Bar’s Decoy Success

A Northbridge wine bar we worked with had a high-margin scotch fillet dish that was selling poorly despite excellent customer reviews when ordered. The issue: customers defaulted to a cheaper chicken option in the same section.

The challenge: Increase steak sales without reducing prices or alienating customers who preferred chicken.

The solution: We helped them introduce a strategic decoy—a similar-priced steak with fewer sides and no sauce—positioned between the chicken and the target steak. We then photographed both steak dishes side-by-side:

• Target steak: Shot with dramatic side lighting, glistening herb butter pooling around the meat, vibrant seasonal vegetables arranged artfully, and a generous portion of hand-cut chips
• Decoy steak: Lit with flat, even lighting, minimal garnish, vegetables plated simply, no sauce visible

The results after 4 weeks:

The decoy wasn’t a failure—it still generated sales and profit. Its primary function, however, was making the target steak look like the obvious choice. Customers who previously would have chosen chicken or hesitated on the basic steak now confidently ordered the premium option.

Owner quote: “We were sceptical that photography alone could shift behaviour, but the numbers don’t lie. The combination of strategic pricing and those incredible photos transformed our steak sales.”

Integrating Decoy Photography into Your Digital Menu

Beautiful photos are only effective if they’re presented properly. A slow-loading PDF menu or a mobile-unfriendly website will undermine your carefully crafted decoy strategy. Here’s why digital menu design matters:

Why PDF Menus Kill the Decoy Effect

• Pinch-and-zoom required: Customers can’t see the visual contrast between dishes when zooming around a PDF
• Low image quality: PDF compression often degrades your carefully shot photography
• No SEO benefit: Google can’t index PDF menu content for “restaurant [suburb] [dish]” searches
• Slow loading: PDF menus take 3-5x longer to load than HTML, increasing bounce rates

That’s why we build responsive HTML menus that display your professional photography at optimal sizes and load instantly on any device. The visual hierarchy you’ve created through photography is preserved and enhanced by thoughtful digital design.

If you’re still using a PDF menu, you’re missing out on both SEO benefits and the visual impact of professional photography. Read our pillar article on why PDF menus hurt your Google ranking and what to use instead.

Technical Optimisation for Menu Photography

We ensure every menu image is optimised for web performance:

• WebP/AVIF format: Modern compression that reduces file size by 30-50% without visible quality loss
• Responsive sizing: Different image dimensions served to different screen sizes
• CDN delivery: Images served from edge locations closest to Perth users for faster loading
• Lazy loading: Images below the fold load only when needed, improving initial page speed

For more on speed, see our technical deep-dive on fast websites for Perth hospitality businesses.

Advanced Decoy Strategies for Perth Venues

Once you’ve mastered the basic decoy dish approach, consider these advanced applications:

Drinks and Cocktail Decoys

The decoy effect works brilliantly for beverages, where margins are highest:

• Wine: Position a $14 glass between your $12 house wine and $15 premium pour—the $15 becomes the obvious choice
• Cocktails: Offer a “classic” (basic spirits) and “premium” (top-shelf) version with a decoy in between
• Coffee sizes: The classic small/medium/large pricing often uses the medium as a decoy for the large. See our guide on breakfast and brunch photography for visual examples of this in action.

Set Menu Decoys

For Perth venues offering tasting menus or set options, structure your tiers with decoy psychology:

• 3-course lunch: $55 (4 dishes, no wine)
• 4-course lunch: $65 (5 dishes, no wine) — Decoy
• 5-course experience: $75 (6 dishes, wine pairing) — Target

The middle option makes the premium experience look like exceptional value for just $10 more.

Upsell Decoys

Train staff to present verbal decoys when upselling:

“For sides, you can add the house salad for $6, the truffle fries for $9, or both together for $12—the combo is definitely the way to go.”

The $9 truffle fries become a decoy that makes the $12 combo seem like a deal.

Your Menu Is a Psychological Playground—Use It Wisely

Menu engineering transforms your menu from a simple list of dishes into a strategic profit driver. When you combine pricing psychology with professional food photography, you create a powerful visual sales tool that guides customers toward your most profitable items—without them feeling manipulated.

In Perth’s crowded hospitality market—where customers in Northbridge, Fremantle, Subiaco, and the CBD have endless options—this combination isn’t just nice-to-have. It’s essential for standing out, increasing average spend, and building a sustainable business with healthy margins.

The venues that thrive aren’t necessarily the ones with the best food. They’re the ones that understand how to present their best food in a way that makes customers want to order it.

Frequently Asked Questions: Decoy Dish Strategy

Ready to Engineer Your Menu for Higher Sales?

We specialise in both menu-engineering consultancy and professional food photography for Perth venues. We’ll help you identify your most profitable dishes, design strategic decoys, create stunning comparative photography, and integrate those images into a fast, mobile-friendly digital menu that drives bookings and boosts average spend.

Start with a free menu audit: Book a free menu audit and we’ll analyse your current menu, identify your Stars, Plowhorses, Puzzles, and Dogs, and show you exactly how professional photography combined with decoy strategy can transform your sales.

Ready to update your menu photography? Explore our Perth food photography packages and see how we create images that make your most profitable dishes impossible to resist.

Related reading: Learn more about comprehensive menu engineering for Perth venues, why PDF menus hurt your SEO, and the ROI of professional food photography for Perth restaurants.