Goubuli buns in Tianjin

Goubuli buns(Chinese: 狗不理包子; pinyin: Gǒubùlǐ bāozi; literally "the buns which dogs don't pay attention to/dogs ignore") is a famous brand of baozi from Tianjin, a city near Beijing, north of China.

Founded in 1858, it is one of China's longest established brands. Several explanations have been offered for its unusual name; perhaps the most common is that the brand name comes from a childhood nickname of the founder, Gao Guiyou(高贵友, Gāo Guìyǒu), given to protect him from bad luck. Another spinoff of the story says that Gao, after the wild success of his baozi business, had less and less time to converse with his patrons, which led to a joke amongst the patrons that Gao does not care about them, hence the name "Dog Don't Care".

Gao Guiyou--the founder of Goubuli buns

According to tradition, the Empress Dowager Cixi was brought some Goubuli baozi by Yuan Shikai(袁世凯, Yuán Shìkǎi), who returned from Tianjin, and she pronounced them delicious, instantly adding to their fame.

Cixi (1835-1908)--the Empress Dowager in Qing Dynasty

As of 2005, the Goubuli brand is owned by the Chinese pharmaceutical company Tong Ren Tang(同仁堂, Tónɡ Rén Tánɡ).

Tong Ren Tang in Beijing