I love love love our Piatra Gray. Have not regretted it at all. Very minimal upkeep. I wipe them. That's it. No edge damage (yet), staining is just not an issue. We have it on off white perimeter cabinets and on the natural cherry island. Looks great on both. I do get tons of compliments on it. Everyone is surprised it's quartz and honestly so am I. It has a very nice subtle cream veining that does not look grainy or weird to me at all. And I love the soft gray (greenish undertones) background. It's just enough to stand out but does not feel stark black at all. I just got the regular polished surface but it has a very soft finish and feel. Not overly shiny. Did I mention I love it?

I just had Minuet installed and I really love mine too. Have not seen the one mentioned above. I don't regret my choice at all. It's perfect for our family. No staining. Soap and water clean up. It is on white per inter cabs and a black island. I liked the whiter background of the minuet. Some say it has a hit of tan/brown and I think that is true but I like that hint of brown tone. Here are a couple of pics

of mine.

The Piatra Gray was the right choice for us. No damage, no stains, no fuss. We don't put hot items but we don't baby it. Every time DH leaves a wine glass out or leaves a drippy coffee mug on the counter, we know we made the right choice. Now the darker color does have a slight downside -- any greasy substance must be wiped with cleaner or a soapy rag, or you can see a slight streak of residue if the light catches it just right. Not really a problem -- it was just harder to see in the old busy granite. Dust and waterspots are not an issue, compared to Absolute Black gloss. In constrast, our marble table and shelf need to be babied. The shelf was dented by a crystal vase and a stain appeared that needed a poultice.

We considered soapstone as well, but DH vetoed it (too dark, too soft). We also considered Super White (etches, stains) and quartzite (could not find a slab,, budget buster). I don't think any quote we received, though, hit the $130 sq ft mark, except for one Cambria quote.

old reveal link: can't believe it's been two years

Thank you all for the info on how your countertops are working for you. You've all made beautiful kitchens. Yes, I'm still rather sad about the price quote for the soapstone. Tomorrow I'm going back to the place where I have it on hold to see what else they might have. Probably gonna have a good cry when I see the beautiful slabs of soapstone.

Anyway, I'm on the lookout now for a business that has a countertop display of the Piatra Gray and Viatera Minuet, and anything else that is in the neutral family that is bullet proof, so to speak. I need to see if the gray of the Viatera will appeal to me vs the black I was going to get with the soapstone. Most of the black granites I've seen have some sort of pattern within it that I don't care for.

I'm not opposed to granite or quartzite either, as long as it's neutral in color and not too busy.

What I found odd about the company I got the soapstone bid from is when I asked her what that broke down to per square foot, she said they don't figure the price by the square foot and neither does the fabricator. Am I missing something here? What else do you base it on?

@designsavvy. In our area the slabs are priced by the square foot and the fabricator adds a fabrication charge based on the number of holes and mainly, the edge profile. Markups and labor charges can vary so you might try another reputable fabricator. (The key there is a good fabricator..... )

I got a 4" x 4" CS Piatra Gray sample today and am stain testing it, along with my larger sample of Viatera Minuet.

Not one granite appealed to me that I saw today. Of course, I drooled over the Danby marble.

They had what one person posted here some time ago ...white soapstone. Which obviously it can't be soapstone, but they named it that. I should have taken a picture. It really is very cool looking...very white with dramatic black veining.

18 hours later the stain testing conclusion:

Viatera Minuet: two spots remain that I can still faintly see after scrubbing with Dawn and then Bar Keepers Friend.

Caesarstone Piatra Gray: no stains visible. Perhaps they're camouflaged because it's a darker surface? Don't know, but at least I can't tell.

DH really likes both and I do as well.

Piatra Gray would go on perimeter Dover White Cabinets and the Minuet on a painted gray island (will just have to make sure placemats are used!!)

A definite contender!!

I have minuet and nothing has stained yet. Just wondering what did leave a small stain on your sample?

I should have paid more attention before washing it off. I put a drop of Siracha hot chili sauce on it, mustard, soy sauce, a paste of paprika, and lemon juice.

Both spots are pink-ish, so I'm guessing the Siracha and paprika.

It's very faint, though. But, now those spots feel rougher from scrubbing. Hopefully nothing will sit that long on it and I pretty much prep on the perimeter countertop anyway.

Interesting. I never tested my sample. Are you supposed to use BKF? Or soft scrub? I have left soy sauce sit for a while but no staining and we use siracha but I guess it's never gotten on the counter. I will be careful tho. Thanks!

Hmm, don't know if you're suppose to use BKF, but I'll be sure to check all that before I use on countertops.

I just ran my finger over area again, and it doesn't feel rough. There must have been some trace amount of the BKF I was feeling. So that's good to know.

We installed Piatra Gray almost 2 years ago. We have Calacatta marble on our island, so I wanted something low maintenance on our perimeter. I love the PG - it is easy to maintain and looks beautiful. I don't put hot pans on it, but I definitely don't baby it.

Link to kitchen reveal

ljg419, I saw calacatta oro at the stone place and it was so beautiful. Are you really careful with it? My dh and son aren't very tidy, so I'm afraid to do marble on my island where they sit to eat sometimes.

@designsaavy, I love my marble, but to be honest, I am pretty careful with it - probably more so than I have to be! My main concern is etching; if you have a really good sealer and pick up spills fairly quickly, staining shouldn't be a huge issue. My daughter sits and eats at our island sometimes, and we haven't had any issues. We do have a few etch spots, but I can't even see them unless I lean down and look from a particular angle. I would definitely recommend getting honed marble over polished, which helps hide any "patina." :)

@designsaavy. I think you may be seeing some of the reported staining issues with strongly colored materials with the white quartz. As long as you wipe the worst up within a few hours you should be okay.

@ljg0419. -- it seems we ended up with many of the same materials and vendors! We baby the marble on the kitchen table as well. Great marble mosaic btw.

Btw, all y'all's kitchens are beautiful. If it's this hard with countertop, I can't imagine when I search for a backsplash.

@Gooster - we sure did! You posted your reveal the day we "broke ground" on our kitchen reno. I love your banquette and table - and Corgi! :)