I have honed Carrara marble in my kitchen and there are stains everywhere. Especially water and acid stains. it looks terrible when the natural light hits the counter. I would not recommend it in the kitchen unless stains don’t bother you.

Having marble in the kitchen is not like having it in the bathroom. You will need to keep it sealed because food and liquid will stain it easily. It will still etch but that’s expected. Put some tomato sauce on your bathroom countertops and see what happens. ( just kidding, do it on a sample piece) love it in the kitchen how it ages, just keep it sealed

Can't show stains on my six year old honed marble because there aren't any! There is some etching and a few flea bites around the sink. I'm a lazy housekeeper, so I've only sealed it once.

I've got one long run of marble countertop in my kitchen and a marble vanity top in my bathroom--both honed. There may be minor etching, but if so I don't even notice it. I think it all really boils down to how laid back you are vs how compulsive you are and if you want a showcase kitchen or a truly used kitchen. About a month ago I was concerned about a yellowed ring from a soap dispenser on my bathroom top. I tried cleaning it but it was still visible (to me). Within a couple days it had disappeared. Perhaps some of these things just balance out after time.

FWIW a few years ago we visited Ostia Antica which is about 30 miles outside of Rome and used to be the seaport for the city. One of the ruins there is a 2000 year old tavern kitchen. Guess what the counters were? They are still around with a bit of patina.

Polished marble turned dark from fresh cookies left on counter. Doesn’t bother me but it does happen. Seal honed marble

Thanks for the comments!! I got the honed marble and they were sealed. I am a bit concerned about chemicals from the sealers in the kitchen around food, but came across this sealer: 511 H2O Plus, if anyone is interested. I don't think it probably works as well as the more chemical sealers but i guess that's the tradeoff... This is from the manufacturers website (Rustoleum)

"511 H2O Plus is a O on the toxicity scale, is non-flammable and has no odor. For any area where smell or allergy is a concern the customer may use 511 H2O Plus."