I think it looks wonderful -- soft and very calm. Very pretty combinations, I think. It's hard to judge and appreciate a room when things are still incomplete and without any accessories. I'll let others be the judge of black counters, but I'd think it would be a very classic overall look for your kitchen. And if you like strong color contrasts, personally, right for you. I would consider the size and layout of your kitchen with a striking counter material, though. I'd probably choose a softer counter color; maybe a soapstone if looking in that color family. A soft, honed finish on the granite sounds good overall, to me. Very beautiful!!

Yes we will definitely be considering laminate countertops, I think I was giddy from my cold (sick this weekend) when I thought of granite - after finding out it would be a minimum of $6000 installed for this kitchen! Considering the context - an inexpensive townhouse - granite would probably just be silly, though it does seem like a prerequisite for resale around here, and we do not consider this our forever home so i do need to keep that in mind. Another option that just occurred to me is DIY concrete countertop - I remember seeing one on a blog some time ago and it was really nice (and very cheap!). I have no idea how that works with the sink cutout etc but I'll have to look up more info, has anyone here done a concrete countertop? The cabinets - they could be a lot better, but after pricing even middle-road Ikea cabinets, and considering the major demolition that would be needed, I am not sure if it's worth it to replace them. Perhaps all they need is a really good stripping and sanding and proper repainting. Our bathroom cabinets have MDF doors, that's why I assumed these were too, but they are wood - just not high quality wood.

Thanks for all the comments. I chose to go quartz instead of solid surface. I'm getting Uptown Gray https://www.hanstonequartz.com/products/uptown-gray  Here is the current turquoise color of the kitchen wall, Gem Turquoise. Taking the advice of most, I've determined a new color scheme for the kitchen going with a lighter turquoise/aqua. I plan to paint the lower cabinets the light gray (Pixel White) color and then leave the upper cabinets white. The darker gray to the left is the quartz. The new question now is should I stick with the brushed nickel hardware and faucet, or go matte black to give some more contrast??

We have drift of mist walls and pure white trim and upper cabinets (stained lowers). I think it's a lovely combo.  Drift of mist is very light (dh thought it was white before he saw it next to the trim), so I think another light gray won't be a good match.