Use a vinyl wood look tile, not the MDF version. comes in many colours and is waterproof and fairly cheap and easy to lay.

What's your budget?

You could go with wood look tile for a rustic look that will withstand water damage.

Cold in winter. Hardwood the norm here for living room but don't know how it would hold up in kitchen

We have hardwood in our kitchen and it's fine. My preference would be hardwood throughout.

I agree with hardwood throughout. Just have it sealed with a non-shiny polyurethane to keep the water out.

I also have hardwood in the kitchen with no problems.

Hi

The trend these days is putting a distressed wide plank engineered hardwood all over in the home, from entry all the way to the kitchen. Most prefinished flooring options available these days comes with finishes that are specified for use in kitchens and entry ways as well.

You want to try to stay away from smooth and shiny surfaces, and very dark colours. These are hard to maintain in the long term and will show every spec of dirt and dust. And smooth floors will age more and show it because they will show surface scratches more. If you get a wirebrushed floor, because the flooring is not smooth to begin with, it will age better with wear and tear.

Also try to stay away from V-grooved hardwood floors since they are going to show the edges of every plank and that way you will see more lines on the floor. You will be better off going with a flooring that has micro-bevels. Less visible lines on the floor, but better than a square edge as small abrasive materials will get stuck in the bevels until you sweep.

Hope all of this helps.