Orange County Floor Kitchen Bath

Im doing a kitchen remodel and am trying to keep it on the cheap a little bit. I loathe the idea of painted cabinets. I did it once and wasn’t pleased wiht the “fake” look they had.
What would be a good system (incuding products) to strip and refinish darker cabinets to a lighter finish?

We are remodeling our entire condo and the cabinets are horrible oak with white laminate. We can paint the oak and while there is some paint that will adhere to the laminate Im thinking we should try something else. What are our options short of replacing the doors?