i would say try a pair of 288. with a thin gasket, youll have close to 11:1 cr anyway, so it shouldnt be to doughy.
i personally wouldnt recommend doing anything else. just cams and a gasket. will give you a good impression of whether it is really what you want, and which way you wanna go to get more out of it.
if its a street car, the next logical step is 7a. there is nothing stopping you if youre not gonna race it, which is the only reason to stick with 1.6L capacity. more power at lower revs, negating the need for a very expensive bottom end, also negating the need for a close ratio box and really short diff ratio. saving you more money again.
when i say lower revs, it will still be very comfortable over 7000, which in reality is really quite high.
this will be my next A series motor. 7a bottom, 101 silver pistons and head, 288 cams.