Granite tiles, but they don't appeal as 'high-end'.

You could go with granite tile, as Dytecture suggested, and I agree, it's not considered equal to solid granite. Personally, I'd just go with a good formica that looks like granite, with a nice beveled edge, if you can't afford the real thing.

Would a thinner granite make it less hardy? We have minimum thickness where I come from. How about stainless steel?

Thanks to all. Good comments that are useful. I made some phone call and thinner material doesn't represent a big difference in price. I will dig in for good formica. If anybody have other suggestion, just let me know