Thanks again everyone for the helpful advice and information.

cc700, thanks for that post, that was extremely informative. So the Raleigh that they had is basically a whole other category of bike then?

Yeah, it seems to have some nice features. Most of which, I actually don't know much about. But nonetheless I guess I will have to strongly consider it in the front running. I will probably test ride it tomorrow. But again, I'm not sure how I feel about riding a gear bike. As great and functional as it seems, it almost seems like more bike than is necessary for my needs. A buddy of mine said I should stick with single speeds because there's less variables and things that could go wrong, which makes sense to me. Also, I've never ridden a bike that can shift gears, so I have no idea. But I do like the disc brake.

As for the Kilo WT and other Raleighs, unfortunately I did not see those bikes at any of the stores I went to. The ones I mentioned in this thread as the bikes I actually got to physically see at the stores that also happened to have my size in stock. And I'm not comfortably buying over the internet right now cause I won't have any idea what I'm getting.

The Surly Steamroller I will probably try and check out. I think Velo NYC (one of the shops I checked out) is a Surly dealer, maybe they just didn't mention it when I stopped by.

Can any comment on REI and their bikes? Some of the posters in another thread that I started in the Commuter forum suggested I check them out. Their warranty policy seems really great. I just don't like that most of their bikes (at least the ones that were suggested) don't have flat handlebars.

So yeah I would also like a bike with flat handlebars.

Yes, I am close to Velo, and at the very least, I definitely liked the look of the Felt Brougham they showed me (it was very simple all black).

Bicycle Habitat didn't really have anything in my budget that caught my eye. except for a cute girl working the front counter, who was probably out of my price point.

So let me pose this question, I realize they are two different bikes, but between the Raleigh Misceo and the Felt Brougham, what would you guys go for?