our story
Las Guerreras is a family restaurant.
It started with our mother, Chef Ofelia Barajas, born and raised in Guerrero, Mexico, carrying generations of knowledge. She sold corn husk tamales on the streets of San Francisco's Mission District, building something for her family with her food, her discipline, and her love. What began as a way to make it became a dream, then a business, then a legacy we are still living.
Today we have a cocina and cevicheria and catering business in Swan's Market in Old Oakland. Our mother is still in the kitchen. Our father brings over thirty years of experience to every shift. We are three daughters that carry the business forward.
Las Guerreras is where our culture lives. Where every plate carries the sazón, resilience, and joy of where we come from. This is personal work, our roots, our offering.
Our dishes come from La Costa Grande, where the mountains, the coast, the mercados, and the family kitchen all come together. We cook the dishes we grew up with: handmade tamales, pozole, barbacoa, mole rojo, ceviches, and comida costeña that tastes like home.
Every dish is made with intention, the kind of care that only comes from family tradition.
ofeLia barajAs
Ofelia Barajas is the heart of Las Guerreras.
Born and raised in Guerrero, Mexico, Ofelia carries generations of knowledge. She learned her recipes from watching her Abuelita Lala who owned a cevicheria and also cooked dinner for her whole family.
Ofelia is a mother of three daughters who work alongside her every day. She has build a powerful community and is turning her kitchen into a lifeline for her family long before Las Guerreras had a name.
As chef and co-founder of Las Guerreras, Ofelia continues to lead with the same strength that started it all. Her food honors Guerrero, her ancestors, and the immigrant mothers who turn sacrifice into legacy.
reyNa Maldonado
Reyna Maldonado is a migrant entrepreneur, storyteller, and co-founder of Las Guerreras.
Born in Guerrero, Mexico and raised in San Francisco’s Mission District, Reyna grew up alongside her mother, Chef Ofelia Barajas, who taught her intuitive cooking, resilience, and hustler spirit
Reyna brings the vision, storytelling, strategy, and community-centered leadership behind the brand. Her work is rooted in honoring her family's journey, creating opportunity for immigrant women, and showing what is possible when culture and entrepreneurship come together.
Meet the dream tEam
Luis Maldonado
Natalia Maldonado
