Ive been lurking for almost a year now, and finally need to ask your advice.
We are in the elementary stages of building, and Im meeting w a kitchen designer tomorrow. My kitchen layout is an L shape with 2 islands. 1 prep, 1 curved for hanging out/entertaining. The prep island will have a rangetop and directly behind it will be the kitchen sink. I will be using a downward draft system.
My question: I am thinking about options about what to have above the sink, since its against an interior wall with a room on the other side.
My fall back are shelves, but I was thinking, since Im not using a vent and wont have a hood, would it look weird to have a hood-esque box with a small recessed light in it with some decorative glass cabinets above it (9 ft ceilings, planning ceiling to floor cabinets with decorative glass cabinets above regular cabs)?
Ive tried googling, but nothing comes up resembling what Im thinking....could it be that weird??
Thanks for your help!!

You know, many here on GW are really down on cooktops in the island. Apparently, everything is expensive AND it is difficult to provide adequate ventingl

Downdrafts are not very good at venting...unless you don't cook much (it's OK if you don't, everyone is different and not everyone likes to cook).

If you cook at all, I strongly suggest you vent the rangetop adequately. That means an overhead hood that's at least 6" wider than the rangetop, at least 27" deep, and has stronger cfms (900+ probably). Island venting has to be more robust b/c fumes, smoke, steam, grease, odors, etc. are subject to more and stronger air currents than when against a wall and will spread out and up faster. This means the hood must be wider/deeper/stronger to capture those fumes, smoke, steam, grease, odors, etc.

I'm guessing you don't want a true hood b/c of aesthetic reasons. So, are aesthetics more important than function to you? (Again, it's OK for you if they are, we just need to know if your #1 goal is looks rather than function.)

You say the sink will be directly behind it. Be very careful when installing the DW - you don't want it to open directly (or even close) behind someone working on the rangetop unless you have at least 48" aisles.

So, how do you envision all of this working? It sounds like the Prep, Cooking, and Cleanup Zones are all going to be crammed into the space b/w the prepping/cooking island and the wall run w/the cleanup sink. Is there a prep sink on the island and is the island big enough to accommodate prepping & cooking? You should have at least 36" of workspace for prepping - although 42" is better. So, is your "prep island" something like this:

1.5" overhang + 18" prep sink + 36" of workspace + 36" rangetop (or 30", if that's what you're planning) + 24" of counterspace = 115.5" = 9' 7.5"

or, if you're planning on prepping next to the cleanup sink and then bringing your prepped food over to the rangetop, then this would work:

24" of workspace + 36" rangetop (or 30", if that's what you're planning) + 24" of counterspace = 84" = 7'

Maybe you should show us your layout... :-D