when you say cherry,are you talking natural cherry color or the dark stain?
I would do all cabinets one and island the other. what is your flooring choice? that makes a difference also.

I love the look of two toned kitchens. A light stained cherry and ivory would be a beautiful combination. I did my island and a pantry wall in cherry, with my perimeter painted (in my case, a buttery yellow). I think that looks nice. But I also like the two toned kitchens that are one color on top and another on the bottom. Stained cabinets do not show dust or drips as much as painted cabinets. If you have a big kitchen, I wouldn't worry about making it feel bigger. There's a big trade off of putting open shelves instead of upper cabinets. That look is not for everyone, and it certainly means more dusting and possibly cleaning your plates before you use them.

I've had open shelving. Not for me. Agree with stain on bottom comments re abuse and drips.

drips need to be cleaned up no matter what the cabinets are made of... they don't become easier to clean when left to moulder.

i dislike dark upper cabinets, they loom over me. i went with antique white perimeter cabinets and a dark quarter sawn island. 'down the road' if a future owner doesnt like the mismatch they only need to change the island.

Personal preference but I don't like different upper and lower cabinets it never looks right to me. If you want a white or off white kitchen but still want to incorporate the beauty and warmth of stained wood i would do all white cabinetry with a stained island - color of island would depend on your flooring.

I think it really depends on the style of the house and the space though. Do you have pictures of a model or anything that will be similar? In the right space all wood kitchens can be so beautiful. Especially if you have a very bright space. The kitchens I usually see though benefit from light cabinetry!

We actually had the same discussion with a client last year. They did end up with cherry cabinets and all the other selections were warm and bright. Make sure you have enough LIGHT if you do go the way of the cherry.