Quoted: FWIW I'd recommend a mountain bike, or a comprimise design between a mountain bike and a road bike, something a lot of companies are calling "comfort bikes."
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+1. A pure road racing bike might be easier to ride on the street but in the event you run into poor pavement conditions, it's better to have the thicker rim of a mountain bike, hybrid or comfort bike. Fewer bent rims = happier Dave_A.
Depending on your price range, I'd say buy a good hardtail (meaning a bike w/o rear suspension) from any of the reputable bike makers. This means staying away from Kmart, Dick's, Sports Authority or ANY big box store bike. Go to a local bike shop and see what hardtails they have in your price range.
If your price range is such that you are choosing between a new big box store bike (e.g. Mongoose) and a used name-brand hardtail or non-suspension bike, go with the latter. Without question. Those big box store bikes are junk, plain and simple. I'd buy a beat-up, used, non-suspension Trek before I bought a new Mongoose!
Good brands include Trek, Specialized, Marin, Kona (my favorite), Gary Fisher ... just ask the bike store guys. The big box store drones won't have a clue.
If you get a mountain bike, you might want to spend some $ on making it more suited for street riding. They make dual-purpose tires that have a lot less rolling resistance for street use, yet retain some tread for poor weather or light off-road conditions. My current favorite is the WTB All-Terrainasaurus.
Also, if you're gonna ride at night, blinkers (front and rear) are required by law in some jurisdictions. And buy a good helmet! Your noggin is very important so don't skimp here. A good helmet can be had for around $50 or less.
My 2003 Kona Cinder Cone (retail around $799), pre-customizations:
shown with stock tires, but I swapped for the WTBs. The bar is also aftermarket (Dirt Head aluminum flat bar), as are the bar ends (Profile Design alumnum), blinkers (Planet bike LED blinkers) and bullet pack (Specialized).
My old bike was a 1993 Trek US-built 930 (chro-moly frame) that was still running strong when I got the Cinder Cone in 2003. I gave it to a buddy who got divorced and needed a bike -- even after 10 years that Trek was still better than any big box store bike made yesterday.