My "Six Degrees" experiment - New Orleans, November 15

I don't have to explain "six degrees" to you, do I?

I'm going to be in New Orleans in mid-November for the Brownfields 2009 conference sponsored by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), and I'm looking for connections from you, my reading audience. I'm interested in meeting folks in New Orleans who might be going to the conference or live in the area, who you think would be interesting dinner companions at interesting New Orleans restaurants. You knew this was going to come around to food eventually, didn't you?

I think I can hold my own in an interesting, wide-ranging dinner conversation and I hope to meet people who can do the same, Interests will range, I hope, from food (natch) to the relevance of the Evangelical church, from public-private partnerships to New Orleans jazz families.

Any help?