Women in the running to be 'Miss Harlem Shake'

HARLEM (WABC) -- There's Miss America, Miss USA, Miss Universe, and now, the search for Miss Harlem Shake.

She'll represent a restaurant in Harlem.

A Ph.D. candidate, a media specialist, and a tax accountant are among the women vying for the title of Miss Harlem Shake.

This is a new competition for women in Harlem and it's meant to be fun, but also to shine a light on some of the community's incredible women.

"I'm a food blogger in Harlem and I saw a post about winning free burgers for a year in Harlem, so I was like my two favorite things, how do I sign up, where do I go?" said Cassandra Rosario, Miss Harlem Shake contestant.

Cassandra Rosario went to "Harlem Shake". It's a year-old burger joint on Lenox Avenue and she entered the Miss Harlem Shake contest.

"This is really not a beauty contest per say, because we don't want to objectify women, it's a personality contest and so the woman we envision as our representative for next year will be beautiful and strong, inside and out," said Jelena Pasic, the owner of Harlem Shake.

55 women entered and the competition is now down to 10 finalists.

And there's a leaderboard currently topped by teaching artist Elan Ferguson.

"I said, 'Oh my gosh, am I going to have to dance?'" Ferguson said.

Nope, despite the name, contestants don't have to do the Harlem Shake to win, but a little strategy could help.

"I've been telling people, but I haven't had a good strategy to get people to vote for me. I may pin up signs almost like I'm running for mayor," Ferguson said.

Aside from free burgers for a year, the winner will get $500 plus $1,000 donated to her charity of choice.

"Our policy is to give back to the community and you can do that in a boring way or a fun way. We thought this would be a really fun way to give back," Pasic said.

With every order, customers get a ballot with blurbs about each contestant.

"I'm going to read their bios, they're beautiful women," a customer said.

The Miss Harlem Shake contest may be the modern day version of the Miss Subway contest, but this one's a little more delicious.

"You don't need to add anything to the burger, don't take anything off the burger, perfect as is," Rosario said.

Voting ends August 31st and from the 10 women remaining, the five women with the most votes will move to the finals.

The restaurant is hosting a ceremony with local judges on September 13th to choose a new Miss Harlem Shake.

For more information please visit: http://www.harlemshakenyc.com/