Agree that granite tile just looks like you were cheap. If prefer a nice laminate and no grout.

The wood counters look nice!

Please, do anything but granite tile. Talk about looking cheap AND it's a pain to clean that stupid grout!

What about granite tile? Less expensive than slab granite for sure but still a lot of the same look.

00:45 here - Our countertops look anything but cheap. They also really warmed up the kitchen. We have white cabinets. The big draw back to wood counters is that you can't do wood cabinets, but I really like the look of white with wood. We also have wood floors and I was concerned the countertops would clash with the floor, but they go perfectly.

If you don't want to go with wood exclusively, I have seen several kitchens where they mixed wood with granite or marble or other surfaces and that also looks great. Wood on the island with a solid surface for the other areas would still save money.

Some links:

This shows different styles and expense http://kitchenbacksplashes.blogspot.com/2011/06/wood-countertops.html

Three important terms to understand "edge grain" "end grain" and "plank grain" Butcher block is "end grain" and I hate it and think it's ugly.

Our Ikea counters are "edge grain" - here is a slideshow of "edge grain" http://www.brookscustom.com/edge-grain-portfolio.php

here's a slideshow of plank grain (more expensive and looks higher end) http://www.brookscustom.com/premium-wide-portfolio.php

and tons of pictures. check out the FKB (finished kitchen blog) for pictures of entire kitchens.

seriously you should go to gardenweb.com "kitchen" forum. this has been discussed ad nauseum.

my friends have the ikea butcher block with white cabinets and it looks great. i am considering doing them when we remodel.

Wood countertops always look cheap? Please. Stop leaving useless troll-y comments.

PP here, checked the links and they don't go directly to photos, but you can get to manufacturers' websites.

Here's a whole thread from last year on wood countertops, with links to pictures.

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/126526.page

Anonymous wrote:Wood. I know a lot of people's immediate thought is butcher block and unsanitary, but wood countertops have come a long way.

Pics please.

Wood counters ALWAYS look cheap, at any speed.

Laminate. There are beautiful *high definition* laminates now that mimic the look of stone. We redid our basement as an in law suite and in the kitchenette we used laminate that mimics marble. I actually like it more than I like my granite.

Wood. I know a lot of people's immediate thought is butcher block and unsanitary, but wood countertops have come a long way. You can go with a very high end glossy, plank grain counter which wil be close to granite $$ or for a fraction of the cost you can do what we did and go to Ikea. We bought their oak counters and had them professionally installed. You can darken the finish with a stain, give it a sleek glossy seal or leave it more natural. We did the latter because it lets us sand out any scratches or stains and use a beeswax sealant every 6mo (we do not cut on the counters). We've gotten nothing but compliments and the cost was 1/3 of granite.

We are doing a big renovation and granite countertops will add another $5K to our price. Are there any other good options that are less expensive? I hate to do a beautiful remodel and then have crappy countertops but the costs for everything are just skyrocketing.