Francis Coulson MBE (6 June 1919 – 20 February 1998) was an influential British chef and co-owner of the Sharrow Bay Hotel.

[1][2][3] His obituary in The Independent described him as a deeply sensitive cook whose ‘airy, light sticky toffee pudding could stand as an epitaph to him in itself’.

[3] As an accomplished hotelier, with his partner Brian Sack he set the bar for a new style of country house hotel.

They and a few contemporaries influenced a generation of restaurateurs with their personal styles, which depended on a deep interest in eating (as opposed to learning the business aspect via a college course).

"[5] Coulson's obituary in The Independent described him as a deeply sensitive cook whose ‘airy, light sticky toffee pudding could stand as an epitaph to him in itself’.