Refinishing an Oak Table...

When we moved to Massachusetts, we decided to rent an apartment at first. We didn't know exactly where we wanted to live, so we decided to research the lay of the land before we bought a home. I thought it would be only a few months before we found a home, but we ended up deciding to build, so here we sit still in the apartment ten months later. We should move into our home in about two months. Here's the  dreamy view we will have out our kitchen/eat-in-nook in our new home. {It's dreamy not because of the workers, but because of the trees. 😁 Although, I'm sure the workers are "dreamy" to someone -- just not me.}

Anywho, one of the things I've really missed about being in a home is being able to spread out and work on a big project. I've been able to sew, but that's about it. I am itching to refinish a piece of furniture, so I've been looking for a particular project to work on soon after we move into the new house. I found it the other day.

We have a loft in our new home. Part of it is a "bridge," with railings on either side. In the model home they had a grand piano there. My seven years of piano lessons never "took," so that's not an option. It's a tricky space to figure out what to do with. Here's a picture of how the space looks now. These railings, of course, are temporary so workers don't fall off the side... (Although, these rickety railings wouldn't keep anyone from a serious tumble.)

At the end of the room we'll have a couch and TV area, but I've been trying to figure out what to do with the space in the foreground. We finally decided to put a game table and chairs in the area. It's plenty wide, and we enjoy playing games in our family, so I think it will work beautifully.

For the last month I've been looking at tables. I wanted a round pedestal table about 45 inches wide. I looked at new tables, but I was more interested in an antique solid oak table. I love these tables, and they are beautiful. I was in the habit of looking on Facebook Marketplace every day to see if one came up and finally last week I came upon one just 30 minutes from our place. I quickly messaged the woman and a couple days later we picked it up. This is her picture, and it doesn't do it justice, but you'll get the idea...

This table was everything I wanted. Solid oak. Beautiful craftsmanship. Forty-two inches wide, and in as pristine condition as an old table could be. The best part of this little project is this table cost $50. Fifty. I was so thrilled! I had been looking at tables that were anywhere from $1000 (veneer) on up (solid wood), so this was a find of monumental proportions. So happy!

I want to refinish this table to give it back some of his former glory, but I have a dilemma.  Do I refinish him with a gray stain, something like this...

or a dark walnut stain, like this...

Either finish would be beautiful.
I'm curious.

Which finish do you like better?

Update: Someone asked for a picture of the flooring and asked about the color of paint on the wall. Here's the flooring (the wood on the left) and the paint color leans toward an off-white color.