A great event, like a great plate of food, shouldn’t be allowed to go to waste.

Alas, so it almost was with the Nosh on the Nansemond. The culinary extravaganza was a Suffolk staple for four years a decade ago, when the United Way raised about $100,000 with the event during that time.

But after 2007, the event fell by the wayside. Other food-centric festivals, like Taste of Suffolk in the fall, popped up to draw the crowd. But the appeal of tasting small plates of food from Suffolk restaurants on the water was always too good to put away permanently.

The Suffolk Rotary Club decided to resurrect the Nosh on the Nansemond this year, looking to replace its prior vehicle raffle fundraiser with something that would be more fun and beneficial for club members and the community alike.

“We felt that the Rotary Club was in need of a signature event,” Margie Wiley of the Suffolk Rotary Club said on Thursday. “It also provides an opportunity to showcase different restaurants.”

On Thursday, about 250 people enjoyed the gorgeous weather, the picturesque setting, the good company and, of course, the food. Mason’s Grill and Smokehouse, Plaid Turnip, Baron’s Pub, Rajput, That Good BBQ, Mosaic and the Hilton Garden Inn Suffolk Riverfront provided free food samples, with Uncork’d and Hoffman Beverage Company supplying the beverages.

Money the Rotary Club raises supports a number of worthy causes in the community, including many nonprofit organizations and student scholarships.

“All of it goes back to the community here in Suffolk,” Wiley said.

We’re so glad to see folks noshing on the Nansemond again, and we wish the Rotary Club much success with keeping the event going in future years.