La Guerrera’s Kitchen has permanently closed its brick-and-mortar restaurant in Oakland after less than a year. But mother-daughter team Ofelia Barajas and Reyna Maldonado are looking at the transition positively.

“It’s a good thing. I think it’s pushing us to think more about our next steps,” Maldonado said.

La Guerrera’s Kitchen’s lease was up in March, and Barajas and Maldonado decided against negotiating for a new one. Their space was shared with the Aloha Club, a bar in the Fruitvale district, with diners ordering from a small takeout window and sitting on a large patio. It was a fantastic set-up in the summer, but Maldonado said they had a tough time in the winter without indoor seating.

Now, La Guerrera’s Kitchen is selling tamales — $40 per dozen — online through its website with pick-ups four days a week at Ale Industries, a brewery just down the street from the Aloha Club.

“It’s amazing to still be in the Fruitvale,” Maldonado said. “More than anything, the amount of support and love we received in the Fruitvale really pushed us to feel a lot stronger.”

But La Guerrera’s Kitchen’s next life might take them out of Fruitvale. Maldonado said they’re close to nailing down a new brick-and-mortar location for their business in a different part of Oakland. She’s excited by not only the prospect of indoor space but a bigger kitchen so they can cater more events when events are a thing again — their tamales have long been in high demand.

Barajas got her start in food selling tamales for 15 years on the streets of San Francisco’s Mission District. She and her daughter came to the U.S. as undocumented immigrants from the Guerrero region of Mexico. They enrolled in the San Francisco nonprofit La Cocina’s kitchen incubator program in 2017, quickly finding catering gigs since so many people already knew Barajas and her tamales.

The coronavirus has created a scary time for restaurant owners all over the Bay Area, but Maldonado sees a silver lining: More people are understanding the essential roles undocumented immigrants play as farm and restaurant workers. She hopes La Guerrera’s Kitchen can continue playing a role in spreading awareness and feeding families in need with the help of nonprofits.

“Even when we are excluded from a system that doesn’t recognize how important we are,” Maldonado said, “I think our community still has our back.”

La Guerrera’s Kitchen. Order online and pick up at Ale Industries noon-4 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. 3096 E 10th St., Oakland. https://www.laguerreraskitchen.com

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker