The beer should be poured properly with the appropriate amount of head, and it should taste good. Although hard liquors are served in pubs, they are not an essential element of a pubs evaluation.
People go there to drink and talk.
There should be no hay bales in a city pub. There should be a sense that the people who go there are regulars of a sort, and not tourists, if not necessarily denizens of the neighborhood. There are very few authentic NYC pubs, because the pub is inherently a British tradition. There are a few facsimiles that aren't too kitschy, and have a decent selection of British and other beers, such as Puck Fair or the Telephone Bar. I like McSorley's and Googie's, though at Googie's I'll probably order bottled beer, and again I avoid them on weekends.