I went with one single bowl. My sink base is 27 inches (small). I found a single bowl that fits the cabinet, can hold all my cookie sheets, lasagne pan, meatball pot, dutch oven and lids with room to spare for dishes. I looked at the 'D' shapes, the double bowls matching and not matching. The single bowl fit more stuff than all of them. I actually took pots with me when sizing up the sinks. Weird, yes, but it worked. My husband, the math guru, actually calculated the usable cubic inch measurement for each; the single bowl topped all. Weird, yes, but it worked and I love my sink. I would regret any other choice.

How often does your brother in law wash dishes at your house?

I agree with cienza -- single bowl.

If you're concerned about counter space, I'd think twice about having the drainboard cut into the soapstone. Maybe even look for a sink that you can drop a cutting board on top of it, so the sink can hold pots and pans, but you can be working over the top of them.

i think we're leaning toward the franke oceana oxx110 - i like the integral ledge - they make a small colander that will fit on the ledge and it's big. just waiting for confirmation that we can fit it into our base cabinet.

Here is a link that might be useful: franke oceania sink

I was convinced that only a double or one & a half would do until i realised that I only really used one side of the sink I had because the other was really used to keep the dish draining tray in
Iy is soooo nice to have a large basin to wash in.