TOKYO (Reuters) - A Tokyo burger joint is getting its customers in on the United States election action by asking them to choose the better burger from two representing US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton.

In this gastronomic contest being held at J.S. Burger Cafe, which lasts until the election, voters get to pick between a Mr. Burger representing Mr Trump, and a Mrs. Burger representing Mrs Clinton.

The former is inspired by the New York Reuben sandwich and features pastrami beef and beef patties stacked together and topped with coleslaw and homemade Russian dressing on a black bun, the colour of which signals Mr Trump's "darker side", according to a restaurant spokesperson.

Mrs Burger, created in the same spirit of invoking the street cuisine of Mrs Clinton's hometown, is given the flavour of the Chicago Dog with the inclusion of two sausages, yellow mustard and pickles on a poppy-seed bun.

Patrons express their approval of either choice by dropping a vote into a ballot box near the cash register, and the winning burger will remain on the menu for a year, after being announced on Nov 9, just as the world wakes up to the new selection for US president.