BellaAge Hickory

10/13/2026

👩‍🍳 Yesterday, we welcomed Aimee Reimann and Glen Berkel, inveterate foodies and members of EveryAge's leadership team, to prepare food complements for specially-crafted bourbon cocktails.

🥃 They began with Woodford Reserve mint juleps and classic hot browns and followed up with Four Roses Bourbon maple-syrup old fashioneds, paired with shrimp-and-chorizo flatbread. Finally, they wrapped up with Maker's Mark apple c***r bourbon cocktails and pork sliders featuring fig jam, blue cheese, and rosemary. 🍖

With every course, Glen shared details about how bourbons are produced and what flavor notes in each one were pulled out to enhance a particular food pairing. It was a little education, a little performance art, and lots of great food and drink! 🎉

These culinary programs featuring spirits and gourmet bites are a favorite of our guests, and this one was a definite hit! 💯

10/09/2026

🚪 Our open house events are a relaxed way for visitors to see what BellaAge is all about!

🍪 We gather in the social kitchen, have snacks and talk a bit about the community and our amenities, and then take off for a tour of all the common spaces and the apartments themselves. Folks love to see so many areas that they can enjoy, and they appreciate the fact that we're pet friendly too! 🐾

📞 If you'd like to join us for an upcoming open house - or to schedule a personal tour - call us at 828-717-1712 or email [email protected]. We'll be happy to show you around!

10/08/2026

🏎 Thanks to everyone who came out to The Autolawn and chatted with us about BellaAge and the pure Bella joy of living in downtown Hickory! We met so many great people and took lots of fun photos with our Jaguar cut-out. Fortunately, the rain held off, so it was a fantastic day of connections, classic cars, and support for the Hickory Museum of Art ! 💜

10/02/2026

👀 Will we see you at The Autolawn? We'll be set up to welcome visitors and car owners and to participate in all the energy and fun. Stop by to see us. We may just have a little swag to share!

Hickory Museum of Art

10/01/2026

🎊 We know how great it is to live in downtown Hickory and enjoy some of Catawba County's best restaurants, markets, coffee shops, and attractions!

But it's always gratifying to have other folks acknowledge the terrific quality of life we have here. Check out this recent article from Our State Magazine for confirmation of what we love right outside of BellaAge's doors! 💜

From the Henry River Mill Village to shops around downtown Hickory, here’s how to extend your fall trip to the Foothills with these can’t-miss activities around Hickory.

09/30/2026

🍾 We love partnering with The Natural Olive for their w**etasting events! Our Loft offers abundant space for socializing and learning, and this most recent session focused on w**es from Italy, Portugal, and other Mediterranean countries.

🍷 Patrons of The Natural Olive joined BellaAge residents and guests to sample red, white, rose, and sparkling selections and to enjoy charcuterie, homemade dips, and other hors d'oeuvres – many of them featuring oils, vinegars, and ingredients from the shop itself. Many thanks to owners Revi and Daniel, their staff, and the sommelier-not-a-sommelier Chris, whose impressive range of knowledge makes w**es, grapes, and terroir come vibrantly alive. 🍇

Everything was delicious, and the evening was such a terrific opportunity for meeting new folks and indulging in good food, good w**e, and great company! 💜

09/29/2026

👩‍🍳 One of our residents is a former chef, so our folks asked her to lead a culinary class, and she chose to teach us how to make gnocchi!

🥔 She guided 10 attendees in preparing the dough using only a few ingredients (like riced potatoes!), forming the pasta with a fork and other simple tools, and cooking it to perfection. She also whipped up pesto and marinara, and we accompanied the gnocchi with a green salad and finished the meal with fragrant lemon bars. 🥗 🍋

It's so satisfying to learn skills from people who have practiced them for a lifetime. We all walked away with a newfound confidence in what we can now create in our own kitchens! 💯

09/28/2026

🍊 Recently, we took advantage of seasonal produce to create beautiful, dried fruit wreaths.

🍎 Using wire frames, dried oranges and apples, cinnamon sticks, and tw**e, we assembled our own personal take on the project at hand. Some folks added new elements to existing wreaths, some fashioned dimensional wreaths with doubled-up frames, and some residents took an impromptu approach and produced freeform wreaths that delighted in spontaneity. ⚡

We think they all turned out beautifully, and we love seeing them displayed throughout the community! 🧡

09/23/2026

Come see what life at BellaAge is all about!

Join us for an Open House on Wednesday, September 30 at 3 p.m. Tour our apartments, explore the community’s beautiful gathering spaces and discover the convenience of living in the heart of downtown Hickory.

We’d love to show you around and answer your questions.

RSVP here: https://bellaage.org/updates/open-house/

09/11/2026

🎤 Yesterday, we coordinated tickets for friends and residents to attend a talk by actor, director, and writer Andrew McCarthy at Lenoir-Rhyne University's Visiting Writers Series.

📖 McCarthy talked about his work writing for National Geographic Traveler and other publications, as well as his acting work as part of the 1980s-era Brat Pack. The main thrust, though, was to highlight his latest book, “Who Needs Friends: An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship Across America.” It was a warm, insightful presentation about how men interact with other men, how those dynamics have changed over time, and what we can do to recapture or build those relationships. 🤝

McCarthy was certainly a crowd-pleaser, from the rows of women who craved being in the presence of an '80s heartthrob to the university students eager to hear from a man who'd forged a long career in the arts to the men who were brought by their wives and found an unexpected friend in a 60-something writer who travelled the country to reconnect with old classmates and discover the bonds that unite men in friendship and camaraderie. 💙