American Cherry in a high traffic kitchen

Q: Would American Cherry hold up in a high traffic kitchen area? Would this be a good choice?

A: It depends. Cherry is a bit softer than red oak. I installed a birch floor in my kitchen on a gamble, because I was bored and wanted something different. My little Boston Terrier has marked it up pretty badly. If there were no pets it would likely do OK. I would not use factory finished. Finish on site with at least 3 coats of oil based polyurethane. Cherry is more dimensionally stable than some harder woods such as maple, to give one example.