I stained it on both I've made- the first with a cherry stain that came out a little too light, the second with the cherry stain and a quick wipe of mahogany stain to darken it a bit.
Poly went on the top, but I have to admit that it was a HUGE pain in the ass to use. I think that perhaps using a polished wax finish or the like might be easier to deal with. There are a bunch of guys here who know finishing work very well.... I am NOT one of them.
The plantation grown cherry that they use is pretty irregular, so some boards have some dark burl like character. When you build it, you'll find one side better for the top than the other, so determine that before you drill your mounting holes. The perfling looks cool in the drawer slots, or you can just fill them with 1/4" stock and sand them down.
Ron