Riding style has something to do with what you like. I have never had a reason for anything smaller than a 26 small front ring. I'm not a grinder either. Fitness level/age will also come into play as well. If in dought you can't go wrong going with lower gearing than you think you might need. I really think that you can't go wrong with the Shimano XT line of modern cranks. They are priced decent and do what they should.

On a recent tour I needed to remove the pedals to get my bike in the bike box at the Amtrak station.... Well I didn't have a pedal wrench but I did have an Allen wrench and just removed the crank. Modern BB's have some benefits that some don't even think about.