I used Behlen's Salad Bowl Finish, four coats, and while it is not as durable as poly I felt it rendered good service, and was food safe. It is crystal clear, BTW.

If not intended for food prep, I also used Rock Hard Tabletop Varnish, where I needed a very waterproof counter finish. It is quite amber in color.

Caey

Due to the way shellac cloud's when exposed to water,I'd stay away from shellac. If surface is ever damaged the oil as Casey mentioned can be easily renewed. If the surface will never be used for cutting, Poly in your choice of sheen would be my choice.

Anything in the kitchen, I use polyurethane. I don't like glossy that much so when I built my kitchen island out of 1.5" thick walnut and hickory, I used satin poly. Never have to worry about water stains.

Thanks all.

I might go with shellac underneath and oil on the top until the weather is nice enough to take it outside to apply something smelly. My kids don't let me do that stuff indoors anymore.

I had an oiled oak top in a previous kitchen and it worked out pretty well so I don't mind using it for a while. This top is cherry and will probably behave completely differently...

Can you apply poly or salad bowl finish on something that has been previously oiled?

I used to do touch-up work for a kitchen design firm. When they had wooden countertops made, the maker always finished them with Waterlox.

"Can you apply poly or salad bowl finish on something that has been previously oiled?"

I've successfully used poly over Watco but I'm sure results will vary according to type of oil. If you can be happy with oil,why not just start with salad bowl oil with plans of renewing as needed?

Is salad bowl OIL different from salad bowl FINISH? Is that just mineral oil or a wax/mineral oil combo? I think that would be acceptable, but I assume I need something more permanent on the bottom as I won't be able to renew it very conveniently.

But if I can't live with an oiled finish, how difficult would it be to switch to a solid (what's the word? Film?) finish in the future?

It depends on the mfr, as they can, and do, call it whatever they want. Salad bowl oil or butcher block oil is USUALLY mineral oil, sometimes with wax added. Most finishes will not adhere to wax and you'll have a really tough time getting it all off. Salad bowl finish is just about anything, but it's usually a wiping varnish. One mfr used to (and maybe still does), just label one can salad bowl finish and the next their brand name varnish (which despite the label "oil-urethane blend" (which is like calling bread "flour and yeast blend").

So, I would not plan on putting on a salad bowl oil now and hope to put on another finish in the future. (Though shellac is your best choice for adhering to surface with wax residues, then top coat with a varnish, preferably non-poly)

https://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/finishing/oil-finishes-their-history-and-use

http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/finishing/articles_497a.shtml

You should not use a film-forming finish on a surface that you will be cutting on. It will quickly get water under it and start peeling off.

BTW, Watco is an oil-varnish blend. The oil is a curing oil, boiled linseed oil (BLO) See above article on oil finishes. This is quite different than a mineral oil + wax application. Mineral oil does not cure, just soaks in.

Thanks Tox--I meant shellac on the underside of the counter, not under the oil (or whatever goes on the visible surface).

Looks like I should just grow up, plug my nose, and apply a real finish huh? :)

Finishing both sides is warped thinking.