Matte

matte

The finish you like best, but can I ask how you plan to handle all the cut tile exposed edges?

Shiny will reflect the flame better than than matte will.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>Skipjack Tile & Stone I am counting on a professional tile installer to have the answer to that important question. Do you know a way??? Perhaps a finish carpenter will have an idea also?
Thank you

Skippack Tile & Stone - sorry for misspelling your name above ☺️

Skippack Tile & Stone below is my inspiration photo. So possibly some finish trim like this but smaller scale as I don’t have that much room.

Correct me if I'm wrong but you are planning to tile the legs and the lower strip in the tiles? I doesn't look there any space on the top. That looks no more wide than 6"? If that's the case, you may be better off doing it in slab pieces and have the stone fabricator polish the needed edges. I don't see how you'll be able to add a wood surround no matter how narrow.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>Skippack Tile & Stone we are planning on removing the sides, top and bottom of our area as you see it in first photo. Hopefully that gives us a bit more width to work with. I hope to reuse the mantel piece but only the top 4” of it so. Want to come to Saint Augustine, Florida and help me??

I think of a shiny marble finish as more contemporary and formal and a matte finish as somewhat more traditional and casual (to a degree). So, whichever is you goal I would choose accordingly. That's my very humble and hopefully well placed advice.