Actually I think that quite a few offices would have met with his approval. It is not a choice between grey cubes and zany beanbag chairs + silly toys, there are other factors.
I spent a while working for the UK civil service - the ultimate in 'grey'! However, our office was above an aquarium, our research was in oceanography and, as a consequence, we had an amazing foyer (the public aquarium) with a fantastic view out to sea overlooking the harbour (probably the best view in town). The hallways had fish-tanks in them complete with fish that were neither to eat or for decoration, there were 'bits of boat' lying around plus all kinds of sea-going instrumentation. There were plants too, not the sort you get from the garden centre, but I never paid attention to them enough to find out what they were there for. Amongst all of this fun-looking stuff there was a pretty big machine room and half the people there were purely computing staff.
Importantly all of it was the real deal. None of it was fake, just purchased to give some novelty ambience to the office. It all had purpose, but fun was allowed too, within reason. Hallways would have plenty of interesting pictures, you know, the team at the base in the Antarctic, some satellite imagery of an algae bloom, that sort of stuff.
There are plenty of other offices that have some amazing ambience to them. Television production facilities are another example, where there are zany fake things but they are props used for some show or other. Even relatively humble factories making things like cardboard boxes can have cool offices attached, overlooking the factory floor.
The problem I have with Google style offices is that it is entirely fake. The distractions would drive me mad. Everyone knows it is fake. At the same time there is something sick about totally grey cubicles, i.e. with a tech company that just sells software. So, what to do with an IT company that has no 'fascinating product' made on site?
Some inspiration can be found in the Maclaren Technology Centre. This is where the Maclaren F1 cars come from. Sure they have plenty of F1 cars lying around, however, the building has some ethos to it - attention to detail, supreme cleanliness and an air of excellence. It is a complete contrast to your typical car garage. None of it is fake, although I am sure the 'OCD' could drive you mad.
Inspiration can also be drawn from places like Europe where tech companies have taken space in areas that were once used for other things. The character of the old industry - e.g. a dockside building or mill - is inherited and you have something that is repurposed rather than faked.
Anyway, I like to think that there are plenty of office spaces that aren't Google cheesy or grey cubicles but something with character born out of heritage or instilled from some company ethos.