It's a lovely kitchen. I would resist the temptation to make changes in the name of updating. Your kitchen is classic. I agree with mark rachel, lighten up the backsplash if you must do something (I like it the way it is) and do not get two different countertops. Maybe a pretty sea grass green glass subway tile would be a pretty change.

Just for ideas, this is my wood kitchens idea book which has both new and older, refreshed kitchens. Some have black counters:

https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/75202366/list/wood-kitchens

Warm wood tones and cool grays do not bring out the best in each other. That is not to say they look bad together, just a little drab in some cases. In your case, a little dark - could be the photo. You might want to consider a lighter, more silver gray wall paint or a warmer gray - often a warm gray has a green undertone which looks good with wood cabinets. A light backsplash would also help. Right now, your cool walls are not working well the warm backsplash.

Do not be concerned abut "dated". No one who is not very well to do can afford to keep up with the style trends - that is marketing, make people not like their stuff so they will buy new stuff. You want a kitchen that makes you smile because it has contains things that make you smile. My own kitchen is a refreshed oak kitchen. I needed to replace some older surfaces, but also needed to make the new surfaces work with the old, and also be what I like. It can be a challenge, but is much easier if you put aside worry about what is dated and what is not and what will be dated next year.

A new lighter and brighter backsplash would be great.

I don't think your kitchen wall paint color pairs that well with your cabinets. It makes the space too dark and drab.

Thank you all! @mark_rachel, I really like that counter sample. Can you tell me the name? @jhmarie, thank you for the link to your idea book. It's full of great examples! And more importantly, examples that I actually like. The walls will definitely be painted to brighten up the space, but I figured that would come once we figure out backsplash (my biggest issue) and countertops. New chandelier arrives tomorrow. This house is 15 years old, and we've lived in it for 5. Slowly but surely we're making it our own. It's just so hard because one thing always leads to another! Hardwoods need to be refinished and trim and wall paint all need to be painted. It's neverending.

I first thought the paint in your kitchen was too dark, but now I believe it was just the photo. If it's the same paint as seen in the living room, then your kitchen paint really isn't too dark at all.

So your backsplash is all I see as the problem. I'd prefer to do cool tones there, white, green/blue, anything that is NOT cream or beige. Otherwise, to me your kitchen is beautiful, including your current countertops.

With lighter backsplash:

Lighter splash and counter:

To me, it looks like that gray color behind the cabinets is making the cabinets look lower... What if that wall was a color that blends with the cabinet color and the existing backsplash?

https://www.urban-quartz.co.uk/colour/bianco-foresta/

This is a great kitchen space to work with. Open concept leaves room for many color options that will all look great no matter the combination that you go with in the end. A service that our company Your Remodeling Guys offers is something called kitchen cabinets makeovers. This is where your cabinet boxes stay where they are, and you get rid of the old doors. The boxes would then be resurfaced, not painted or stained, to drastically update the looks and feel of the cabinets. New doors are then installed to match!

Even if you are not in our area that we can come see you in person for a free kitchen design, feel free to check out our cool kitchen visualizer on our website yourremodelingguys.com to make help get a visual of what you kitchen could look like!

Good luck on your kitchen project!

Thank you so much for all of your input! Grover, your mockups are especially helpful- I was really struggling to visualize it all. Spisland - your first thoughts are correct - the kitchen is much darker than the rest of the house. SW Virtual Taupe. Most of the house is SW Worldly gray with the exception of our dining room that is a dark blue (I don't remember the actual color).

D Nelsmama, I don't remember exactly where we bought it from, unfortunately. It was an online rug store. We have it layered over a looped wool rug that was impossible to clean and my dog was destroying. An inexpensive bandaid of sorts, but it has worked out great and cleans up easily.

Here is a recent design we did, with some countertops that might interest you. Also note the cabinets.