What about painting it with black chalkboard paint, and make it a menu board like on restaurants?

I painted my cabinets . I think the color was earth green or good earth from Sherwin Williams Use a really good primer. I would paint the back of the cabinet the same as the wall and hang a clock or a small collage of pictures. This photo was taken while I was putting up my backsplash.

Removing them would open up the kitchen but it looks like you need the storage. The chalkboard idea would be good but not the entire thing. you could paint a rectangle in the center and maybe even trim it out with some molding and paint the rest the wall color.

All these replies are great. Thanks, we have talked about taking them down and making shelves.

What about putting glass front doors on the front and back? You could store dinner/serving ware, so you'd have access from both sides, but it would lighten things up a bit - especially if you installed lighting inside the cabinets!

Following up on magdiego's thought...This looks almost identical to the layout of a kitchen I had back in the 80s. We did have cabinets with doors on both front and back, and it was practical (for setting the table) and good looking. In order to keep from needing to be meticulous with the arrangement of dishes inside the cabinets, I used seed glass so it obscured the interior while still maintaining an open look.

Painting the cabinets is an option, but I don't think it will really help with the problem of looking at the blank backs of the cabinets, and I would recommend painting all the trim if you paint the cabinets.

Thanks for the suggestions. Worked on this - Labor Day. I thought it turned out kind of neat. Old frame from cabinet - crackle paint and painted board with chalkboard paint.