You do not mention whether you wooden wall will be painted or stained wood. Either way, there paint products you can use to properly seal and protect the wood either way. You should visit your local paint store and tell them what you are trying to do and see what products they recommend.

Option 4. I would not have more than 2 different cabinet finishes. Darker, grounded look for the base and island, with lighter, airier look for the uppers would balance the room.

that's what I meant. The cabinets below and above the counter can be finished with a light toned wood grained laminate. if you feel that is too plain, another option would be to go with light wood grain below and plain off white above. Maybe add a couple of wood grained shutters above also to break the monotony

hi , i have designed more than 60 kitchens and with my experience it's extremely difficult to cook with stove in the corner of moved a bit to the right it would end up too close to the sink if the space is less and whatever you wash there are chances that it may fall into the cooking bowl .it would really help if you let me know the measurements of that wall . If you want to try something new you can check out cooking corner solution famous in European countries