PROS: Well, if you can afford it this wood has it all. Very dark to medium brown in color it has a wonderous grain pattern that will never bore you. Dark stained oak is it's nearest imitator and doesn’t even come close. Quite durable similar to cherry wood in it's dent resistance. Highly figured in some of the cuts. It is widely available as feature strips, inlays in parquet patterns as well as strip and plank.

CONS: As you can guess this stuff is very expensive and when large quantities are needed it must be special ordered well in advance. Other than it being a bit softer than oak (as if that is the standard) I can't find any fault with this wood.