Have you considered 2 dishwashers? That could solve a lot of your dirty dish concerns. We never have a pile waiting.

Why go that route? Why not admit that's how you use the sink and get a proper drain board? For instance Blanco makes a one and three-quarter's bowl double sink with a drainboard. Elkay makes both single and double drainboard sinks. Another poster, FLdirt, also found a one by Oliveri, theirs is very interesting because it's very chic black glass...I'm not sure how that would hold up but it must be that they hold up well or they wouldn't be selling them. Drainboards are really common elsewhere in the world I am not sure why we don't like them US.

practigal -- holy moly!! Is THAT what those areas are for?! In the past week, I've seen sinks with the shallow side and couldn't figure out what in the world people use that space for. I thought it was for prep, and I'd never prep in the sink. That sink style you posted makes so much sense for us. SO MUCH. And, maybe we'd hate the look of dishes piled up there and start taking care of our dishes in a timely manner. ;)

johnsoro25 -- we sometimes have trouble filling up the dishwasher when we want to run it. I think we need to cure our laziness before we add another appliance!

Another thing about the drain board idea is that I would not have to lament the counter being used up by imposters. I know it's technically the same space taken up either way, but it would feel like less of an intrusion if the space taken up looks like the sink!

ETA: OR... we can get one of those 45" sinks and keep a small queue in there, and after washing, use a roll-up mat on that same side (eliminating the dish rack). I usually hate dirty dishes in the sink, but if the sink is large enough that dishes can stay out of the way, I'd be fine with it.

I typed this answer but forgot to press post before seeing the answers regarding the drainboard above- agree with all those posters-

A big single sink with additional sloped soapstone drainboard (no runnels) is your answer, gets dishes off the counter and has enough room to dry dishes both inside and outside the sink. If it is your drainboard that looks splotchy, you won't mind as much.

Soapstone varies. The softer, greyer soapstones seem to need to be oiled more often and may become greyer around the sink due to the constant presence of soap and water. Some people "go grey" because of this and never oil their soapstone. However, oil soaks into soapstone and then you get the other problem of dark spots around the cooktop, which you can avoid with oiling. If you get a darker, harder soapstone, the oil/wax mixtures seem to hold well and prevent or hide those issues. I have Julia, and havn't had to re-oil/wax since it was installed a year ago. Water spots have not been an issue. Oil drips get rubbed in and the whole counter gets cleaned with a soapy dishcloth.

I have read that the rinse agents from dishwashers will cause rings on soapstone when dishes and cups are taken out of the dishwasher and placed on oiled soapstone. I have seen that transiently but after a few hours it seems to go away.

You can also have drainboard area carved into the soapstone itself, so you can use any (undermount) sink you like. Here are some examples on the M.Texiera website (scroll down the page to see them):

http://www.soapstones.com/soapstone-kitchen-countertops/

Interesting, maybe the reason people don't use drainboard sinks is that they don't understand the purpose of the drainboard. That makes sense because you will seldom see a photograph of a drainboard "in action" because generally people don't like taking photos of their sinks with dishes and also because most of the European style drainboards have a drainstyle that the average American would not realize is a drain.

Yes -- I keep seeing those slits in the soapstone, and had no idea why someone would do that. Now it makes sense!

Water leaves horrible marks and rings on my soapstone, drives me nuts. I'm not a constant counter wiper, but I think I have to become one. I'm trying to train everyone to put dirty dishes in the giganto sink, but it's a hard road.

We have a hard soapstone and the same washing habits. And a recycling pile that doesn't get to the garage fast enough. We have the runnels carved into one side and use a dish rack over that but without the drip tray. The water rolls into the sink with cut drainboard. This pic was taken just before I re-oiled. You can see blotches on the left side, that is where dirty dishes sit, cat food gets plated (I am their servant so why not use the proper terminology?). The oil fades quickly there because of the constant washing. The drainboard side stays dark because it is just clean water falling on it; not soap. The area around the faucet where the soap dispenser is kept I have started to just let go and keep natural for the most part.

I am finding that I prefer the properties of SS when not oiled but I love the contrast (grey cabinets) and veins when oiled. I've been mostly oiling them before parties when I want the room to shine. We do see water marks on oiled and natural but scrubbing with the rough side of sponge removes them. Ours were finished with 80 grit. I also love that they don't need to be sealed and I don't have to be careful about cleaning products.

Yes, rubber feet will fade the oil. The outline of our laptop, iPad case, etc. are also immediately obvious. This is one reason I like not oiled. I would choose it all over again because of no staining or etching. It is great for rolling out dough. We have had some scratches that are blending into the veins so I don't really notice them - my husband has done all of them and freaks out each time (mostly because he thinks I will freak out - but I don't) . The water marks are not permanent and a few minutes and some mineral oil makes the kitchen look fantastic.

It isn't for everyone. My mom comments on the blotchiness. She also has a copper sink she hates though. Some people embrace patina and others should choose different materials. Sorry for the dark pic

Brdrl...great kitchen. What is your faucet if I may ask? Ty.