@essence Me too! We are doing a soapstone and honed White Carrara together this week! (soapstone on the counters, full backsplash in the white carrara slab).

I just did this in my laundry I went to a craigslist granite guy equals cheap and got a slab of honed granite cut, shaped, and installed for less than 300 bucks. It was 24"x 70" just a thought. Formica is cheap and will work just fine but granite is not a budget blaster if you know how to cut out the middle man ex lowes Home Depot etc.

Seeing as your other appliances are stainless, I personally would choose a stainless countertop for the lower level of the island. That being said, a copper sink and stainless counter might look gaudy. Conversely, you could use the wood as the lower level and use the material that matches the rest of your counters for the upper level. Either way, good luck!

Torquay in Cambria.. would be the most durable, and least maintenance.