Road feel is really personal. What I consider "good" road feel is probably going to be very different than someone else. For example, a friend of mine hates aluminum and carbon frames. He used to ride a steel frame and loved it. When it was stolen, he tried to find a new bike and wasn't satisfied.
My wife has an old Kona mountain bike from the 90's and Trek road bike from the 90's. I have a Trek mountain bike. My Dolce is aluminum with a carbon fork. The Giant Avail is all carbon. The road feel of a mountain bike is complete different than a road bike.
At this point, I don't have enough experience. It's not like I can get on a bike and tell what kind of material the frame is made of. At the end of the day, I go by comfort. If my butt is comfortable and I can turn the crank without discomfort, it's half way there. Next is how well it climbs and turns. Some of the roads around central MA are in poor shape, dirty or dangerous. For example, a down hill street with a left turn near the bottom. On skinny road tires, it can feel a little bit slippery. It's even worse when there's sand and dirt. I tend to take these turns slowly. Pine hill road in Princeton is a prime example of a dangerous hill.
One thing I do notice is the effect tires have on road feel. My Dolce has 700 x 23 tires. The Avail has 700 x 25 tires. Turning with the avail feels "safer" on the wider tires. If all roads were in great condition it probably wouldn't make much difference, but New England streets aren't always in good condition.
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