Johnep,
You said a 'french polisher'. I don't know if it means the same in the UK as it means on this side of the pond, but I am reading it to mean that your table actually has a true french polish and you want it repaired. If you found someone to fix a true french polish for $250, he either is a scammer, is not very good or has no idea that he can charge more. The great thing about french polishes are that they are infinitely repairable, but there is alot of elbow grease in them. I was wondering if you could tell me what you mean when you write, "However, table still marks...". Do you mean you can still see the imprints from the stuff the movers set on top? Is it a color variation or did the weight of the stuff cause depressions? I would love to help, but I would appreciate more info. A picture is worth a thousand words, depending on exchange rate.
JRM2,
To get a really nice hand applied finish that screams hand crafted, use a padding lacquer. It goes on with a rag just as its name implies and it is rewetting. What I mean by that is, it can be fixed very easily without have to strip anything, unlike polys and varnishes. Shellac is also an option, but is a little more work to apply and not as durable. With the padding lacquer, you can go shiny, matte or anything in between.