About us
John Wayne Formica | Chef, Co-Owner
A native of Chicago, John Wayne (aka JW) spent his childhood years in and out of the kitchen cooking his family's recipes. In 2002, JW joined the army and made his way to Iraq. Upon his return, he found his passion back in the kitchen. After graduating from the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago, he worked for such restaurants as C House, Sunda, and Homestead on the Roof. His talents took him to the Philippines, Italy, and eventually Los Angeles opening restaurants and training culinary teams. While in Los Angeles, he was executive chef of Tao in Hollywood, before heading to the Central Coast to run the farm-to-table Pico restaurant in Los Alamos, CA. Post Covid, JW returned to consulting, opening Crawford's Social and Parque 1055. Ready for the next adventure, JW and Liz relocated to Bastrop, Texas, to open Pluto's as their first independent retail and restaurant project.
Liz Formica | Wine Director, Co-Owner
Liz grew up in small town Illinois before making her way to the big city. She attended college in Chicago and met JW working at Homestead on the Roof. After graduating, she worked in Chicago Public Schools before returning for her master's degree. The journey took her to Turkey where she taught English while JW opened restaurants across the Mediterranean. Shortly after moving out to the west coast, Liz discovered her passion for wine and began the CMS certification. She ran beverage programs in Los Angeles, Los Alamos, and eventually found her way into distribution with Skurnik Wines. Her wine-centric travel and studies have developed into a 'pay it forward love' to share the wonderful world of wine at Pluto's.