I guess it depends on your definition of "large." I worked at a large company (20k+ employees), and each department was like its own dysfunctional 50 person com

I guess it depends on your definition of "large." I worked at a large company (20k+ employees), and each department was like its own dysfunctional 50 person company: nothing got done, the technology was stale, and the perks were minimal. I work at a medium-sided company now (~200 employees according to Wikipedia), and I love it. We have a great mix of technology and perks, and are all treated really well. I worked at a handful of start-ups during the first tech boom (and during the crash), and some were exceptional and some were meh. I wouldn't rule out working at another start-up sometime in the future; it would just be one of the many factors I consider.