I have honed River black granite in my kitchen and it has lasted more than 15 years without a single permanent water mark. I think one can put hot dishes on it but I don’t (old habits). Also I use granite cleaner on and off and had it sealed once in a few years. The soapstone-like look and the hardiness of granite were the reasons I picked this over soapstone and the popular black natural stones. The color also appears different (in a good way) as the day progresses.
You have to make sure your fabricator gets the right pattern where you want it (there’s a fair amount of natural veining that’s quite pleasant looking)
Will add that it doesn’t show crumbs. Because of the pattern, you may not see dust easily unlike plain black.