The length is 6 feet. I think we're committed to two lights. I need to decide whether to go with mini pendants or pendants with a wider width to have a good amount of light focused on the island.

Check into the lumens that the fixtures provide. It's not the size of the fixture that determines the light output. Pendants should always be supplemented by additional ambient room lighting, usually by recessed fixtures. Under cabinet lighting should also be an important element of your overall lighting design. It makes a huge difference to have your work counters lit properly!

This will be helpful. We will also have the other lighting that you mentioned. Thanks!

2 5" pendants will be too small in scale IMHO. If you consider 16" from each end of the counter and 16" between the pendants, that calculates to (2) 12" pendants. We have a blog post on this subject that may offer some additional insight if needed:

Kitchen Island Pendants – How Many?... What Size?...

Thanks for your reply. I will take a look at your blog post. When you refer to 12", do you mean the opening at the bottom, or the total height of the light? thanks very much.

Correct. What also has to be considered is where the outlets are located - on what centers in relation to the island?