Mayflowers - the story about a company's stainless sinks "disappearing from the landscape"--which is a rather dramatic way of saying the sinks were no longer offered for sale--was about the TICOR company, not Kraus. Regarding rust on stainless steel sinks, even well-known stainless steel sink manufacturers like Franke and Blanco warn about rust appearing on THEIR sinks from using steel wool or leaving other metallic items (cans, metal spatulas, etc.) on the sinks so that tiny particles are left on the sink's surface which rust. So your rust warning applies also to Franke, Blanco and any other manufacturer who provides care instructions for their sinks to avoid rust. Your recommendation about finding a sink with American steel is problematic. Major manufacturers like Kohler, Blanco, Franke, and even Elkay source their steel from all over the world, including China. It would be difficult for any consumer to know for sure where the stainless steel in their sink came from. Even if you call the manufacturers, they won't have the information on the sources of each run of stainless steel they buy, which went to which factory, which went to which retailer, and which went to which sink an individual is buying. There are many enthusiastic owners of Kraus sinks on this forum. It's a lot of bang for the buck. Franke, Kohler and Elkay offer the thinner 18-gauge SS, and no grid, at the same price point or higher as Kraus' 16-gauge with grid.

What is your budget? You could spend $250 or $2500. I recommend Kraus sinks. A lot of bang for the buck, great reviews on this forum and on sites like Amazon and Overstock. Often when you get a more famous brand name sink like Blanco or Franke you are paying a lot for the name, but if the sink is one of their lower-priced ones, they are not make in Switzerland or Germany either.

I found this on-line: " The Houzz study reported that 3/4 of the respondents still planned to have stainless steel appliances. Their popularity continues, even though more homeowners are opening up to other styles and finishes. People like stainless steel. It matches every wood tone and finishes. Dark wood, light wood, and white cabinets all look good with stainless steel. The Five most popular kitchens on Houzz for 2019 all had stainless-steel appliances." I vote for stainless steel also.

I have a totally different suggestion (and not as on-trend). Read the reviews that accompany it. https://www.elkay.com/products/ilgr5422l2.html I am going with this double bowl drainboard sink that I was lucky enough to find used. My largest cookie sheets and handled fry pans will fit flat in one side. i can wash dirty produce (using a cheap colander) and prep in one side while having dishes in the other side. The drainboard is fabulous to have for letting things dry and for thawing things like frozen shrimp (yes, I know recommendation is for in-fridge thawing but I never plan that far ahead) or for cleaning messy and liquid things like fish. I can set a cutting board on the drainboard if I instead want to use it for prepping and to extend my counter space. I currently have a cast iron drainboard sink with two bowls and have been searching for a good replication for a different kitchen. A sink like this really is the perfect set-up because it is so versatile without having to store and deal with all of those accessories that come with the work station sinks. I Iooked at those too so know the trade-offs. The sink I linked is a top mount, but there is also a version that is undermounted. The trade off for the undermount is that the bowls are smaller.