GREAT FALLS — Pluto's Crawfish, a burgeoning local seafood venture founded by Air Force member Edgar Woods, is bringing Southern-style cuisine to Great Falls. Woods, originally from Atlanta, Georgia, noticed the limited seafood offerings in town when he was craving comfort food from home.
Meet the entrepreneur behind Pluto's Crawfish:
"I grew up, you know, eating crawfish and shrimp and stuff, and honestly, I just kind of wanted it for myself," Woods said. “You really can't find it up here too much. You can find a good steak, good burger. You can find some good meat. But when it comes to seafood, you know, there's not an abundance.”
After moving to Great Falls through the Air Force, Woods began contacting vendors in Louisiana about shipping him live crustaceans. What began as small dishes shared with friends grew into something bigger.
"Started just like making little plates for friends," Woods said. "One thing led to another, and a lot of people liked what I was doing. So I figured, "Hey, might as well keep it going."
That concept evolved into Pluto's Crawfish, which serves crawfish, shrimp, crab legs, and other seafood via Facebook or phone orders, offering pickup or delivery options. With growing demand, Woods plans to expand to a physical location and has recently launched a GoFundMe campaign to help make that a reality.
"Doing it at my house, I don't want my house smell like fish all the time," he joked. "So, if I can just get one spot where everybody knows, like this is where we can go get it, then it would just kind of solidify it."
Woods believes that encouragement from the community has been just as important as financial support as he grows his business.
"Words are motivation," he explained. “Because, you know, doing it by yourself can be a little intimidating. But, you know, through God, everything is accomplishable.”
As Pluto's Crawfish expands, Woods believes his Southern-style seafood will fill a gap in Great Falls—and bring a little taste of home to Montana.
